Iran’s foreign minister is due to land in Brussels later Tuesday on the final leg of a global tour rallying diplomatic support for the country’s nuclear deal after the Trump administration’s abrupt withdrawal.
Mohammad Javad Zarif will meet with his counterparts from Britain, France and Germany—the three European nations involved in the landmark deal who are incensed by Washington’s abandonment of the pact.
After long negotiations, Iran agreed in July 2015 to freeze its nuclear program in return for the repeal of punishing international sanctions.
But last week US President Donald Trump announced he was leaving the deal and reimposing sanctions.
Zarif’s has since embarked on a whirlwind global tour, visiting both Russia and China, the two other signatory nations, in a bid to bolster support.
Washington’s decision to go against its European allies’ advice and abandon the deal has pushed them closer to Beijing and Moscow as diplomats scramble to keep the pact alive.
“The agreement with Iran is working, we must do our utmost to preserve it,” Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for the head of European diplomacy Federica Mogherini, told AFP ahead of Zarif’s arrival.