Truss to discuss detained Brits and nuclear deal with Iran

The foreign secretary is set to meet the Iranian foreign minister Amir Abdollahian at the United Nations General Assembly in New York today.

She will call for Iran to immediately release all UK nationals trapped in Iran, including Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe who will mark the 2000th day of her arbitrary detention in the country this Thursday.

The foreign secretary has said she will state that a “reset” of bilateral relations between both countries must be a shared interest, but that Iran’s continuing escalating nuclear programme is blocking progress.

She will also reiterate the US offer to lift sanctions in exchange for Iran returning to full compliance with its nuclear commitments and will call on the country to return to the Vienna talks regarding the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action  (JCPoA).

The JCPoA participants (Iran, UK, France, Germany, Russia, China, the EU) and the US kick started negotiations in Vienna to restore the JCPoA in April this year.

Iran has not committed to return to the negotiations, which were paused in June after their Presidential election, although other JCPoA participants and the US have said many times they are ready to do so.

The latest reports from the International Atomic Energy Agency confirm that Iran is closer than it ever has been to producing nuclear weapons.