UK, France, Germany slam Iran 'death threats' against UN nuclear chief

The UK, France and Germany have accused Iran of making "threats" against the head of the UN's nuclear agency after a hardline Iranian news outlet last week called for his execution.

"France, Germany and the United Kingdom condemn threats against the Director General of the IAEA Rafael Grossi and reiterate our full support to the Agency and the DG in carrying out their mandate," the three countries said in a joint statement.

"We call on Iranian authorities to refrain from any steps to cease cooperation with the IAEA. We urge Iran to immediately resume full cooperation in line with its legally binding obligations, and to take all necessary steps to ensure the safety and security of IAEA personnel," they added.

The statement follows an article in the ultraconservative Kayhan newspaper that accused Grossi of being an Israeli spy.

"It should therefore be officially announced that he will be tried and executed upon arrival in Iran for spying for the Mossad and participating in the murder of the oppressed people of our country," the news outlet wrote.

Tensions between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have risen following Israel and the US's attack on Tehran's nuclear sites. Iranian lawmakers last week voted to suspend cooperation with the agency, while the country's top diplomat expressed outrage at its refusal to condemn the strikes.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi last week accused the IAEA of being "fully responsible" for the current situation by passing what he called a "politically-motivated resolution", referring to the agency's declaration earlier this month that Tehran had violated the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.

"Rafael Grossi's insistence on visiting the bombed sites under the pretext of safeguards is meaningless and possibly even malign in intent," Araghchi wrote on social media on Friday, accusing him of an "astounding betrayal of his duties".

In a statement earlier on Monday President Emmanuel Macron said he urged Tehran to re-enter negotiations over its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes in a phone conversation with his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian.

Tehran has moved to reassure Western governments that it will not harm IAEA staff, with Iran's ambassador to the UN telling US broadcaster CBS that inspectors working in the country are safe.

Grossi said over the weekend that Iran could begin enriching uranium "in a matter of months" despite the US claiming to have destroyed its nuclear facilities.

Iran lays out conditions for new nuclear talks

Iran will not return to nuclear talks with the US unless it rules out further military action, the country's deputy foreign minister has told the BBC.

The Trump administration plans to restart negotiations this week but has not ruled out further airstrikes as options during talks, Majid Takht-Ravanchi told the British broadcaster.

Iran and the US had engaged in several rounds of nuclear talks when Israel launched an attack against Tehran's nuclear facilities and military sites. The US bombed three nuclear facilities on 21 June before calling for an immediate ceasefire.

Trump said last week that he would "absolutely" consider further strikes against Iran if he believed it was producing highly enriched uranium.

Takht-Ravanchi said that Iran was not prepared to compromise on its right to enrich uranium, but said the nature of its nuclear programme was negotiable.

"The level of that can be discussed, the capacity can be discussed, but to say that you should not have enrichment, you should have zero enrichment, and if do you not agree, we will bomb you - that is the law of the jungle," he told the BBC.

The US, Israel and European countries have insisted that Tehran must not be allowed to enrich nuclear material, even for civilian purposes.

Trump had initially talked up the prospects for a meeting with Iranian leaders and held out the possibility of sanctions relief if it re-entered negotiations.

He then backtracked after Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei claimed to have given Washington a "slap in the face" in his first speech since the 24 June ceasefire.

"I am not offering Iran ANYTHING… nor am I even talking to them," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Monday.

He reiterated his claims to have "totally obliterated" Iran's nuclear facilities in the strikes.

Trump on Friday dismissed as a "hoax" reporting by CNN that his administration was considering offering economic incentives to Iran in exchange for halting enrichment.

The US network reported that the administration could offer as much as $30 billion to Iran to build a civilian nuclear programme.