EU ministers meet as Iran escalation fears grip Europe

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00:00As Israel and Iran continue to exchange missiles after the weekend's escalations,

00:06European leaders wish to calm the tensions and bring those involved back to the negotiating table.

00:15Apart from entering a forever war against Iran,

00:18the only long-lasting, robust and safe way back for the decades to come

00:22is by negotiation through a binding agreement like the one we reached 10 years ago.

00:30A deal which gradually fell apart after Donald Trump withdrew the United States in 2018.

00:36And after the strikes he ordered on Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend,

00:40ministers in Brussels fear that Iran may respond by attacking American military bases

00:45or blocking the Strait of Hormuz, paralyzing international shipping.

00:50So their calls for restraint are primarily directed at Iran.

00:54A dissonant voice among them, though, is Spain, pushing for tougher action against Israel.

00:58That's why I will ask for the suspension of the association agreement,

01:03an embargo of selling weapons to Israel,

01:06and enlarging the list of people that are being sanctioned to everyone

01:12that wants to be a spoiler of the two-state solution.

01:15Germany, meanwhile, offered Europe's services as mediators between Tehran and Washington.

01:22We in the E3 format will contribute what we can.

01:26I believe it is necessary for us to be ready to negotiate.

01:30We have contacts with all sides and are making very intensive use of them.

01:36The E3 group, comprising France, Germany and the United Kingdom,

01:40spoke directly with the Iranian foreign minister on Friday,

01:44a channel of communication the Europeans hope to keep open.

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