Find all the latest Iran Group Statements, Policy Interventions & Briefs, Commentary and Analysis below.
The Iran Network supported work between 2018-2023 to protect the JCPOA between the P5+1 and Iran, and thereby to implement UN Resolution 2231. This included working with partners across Europe and in Washington and engaging the ELN’s senior network of political, military and diplomatic figures. Our focus was to ensure that Europe plays the fullest and most effective role possible by helping E3 governments and Brussels to better understand and address key challenges in sustaining what remained of the nuclear agreement and productively engage on peripheral issues. Since 2023 we have moved on to a new phase of Iran work looking more broadly at the prospects for nuclear diplomacy in a changing global and regional political context.
The ELN and The Iran Project release a joint, high-level transatlantic statement on US sanctions and the need to ease humanitarian trade with Iran in the wake of the global COVID-19 outbreak.
European think tank directors and founders from Rome to Riga issue a joint call to the US to reconsider its approach to the Iran nuclear deal.
Over 100 European political, diplomatic and military leadership figures are appealing to President Trump not to take unilateral action that would jeopardise the deal and trigger a crisis in US-Europe relations.
In October, the ELN and Hanns Seidel Foundation partnered on a track 1.5 meeting in London which brought together a range of European and Iranian participants both to assess how the JCPOA could still be revived and to consider alternative scenarios in more detail. The ELN’s Policy and Impact Director, Jane Kinninmont, captures the key highlights from the meeting.
On the eve of the seventh round of negotiations on the restoration of the JCPOA – or Iran nuclear deal – the ELN and the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation publish a set of creative ideas to help bridge gaps related to guarantees and sanctions relief.
To lead during this global crisis, Europe must boost production of medical supplies not just to meet demand at home, but also to sustain commercial exports so the developing world isn’t solely dependent on aid.
Ahead of the European Parliament’s exchange of views on the implementation of Iran’s NPT Safeguard Agreement and other nuclear obligations, this policy brief outlines growing differences on the topic between Russia and the West.
The European Leadership Network releases recommendations ahead of the 10 January meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council of the European Union on Iran and the Middle East.
New analysis by Bourse & Bazaar and the European Leadership Network evaluates INSTEX’s design and operationalization.
Following the recent US–Israeli strikes on Iran and the subsequent regional escalation, Europe’s response has been mixed. As the conflict widens, we ask members of the ELN Network how they assess Europe’s approach so far and what role European governments should be playing.
Any sign that Iran is rebuilding its nuclear and missile programme would likely push Israeli decision makers to order the next major attack against targets in Iran. But this would require the consent of the Trump administration, writes Meir Javedanfar. The Israeli government considers its ability to get Trump to join the war in June a considerable accomplishment and will unlikely want to sacrifice this achievement by angering Trump, especially as the next US-Israel military-assistance MOU is up for renegotiation.
By the end of August, Britain, France, and Germany have to decide whether to invoke the “snapback” mechanism, which would automatically restore pre-2015 UN sanctions on Iran. Hamidreza Azizi writes that a narrow path remains open for those willing to take it. He proposes a roadmap for phased cooperation with the IAEA, anchored in a parallel diplomatic track with Europe and the US. The window for such an approach may close within weeks; quick action on both sides is essential.
The threat to global non-proliferation norms resulting from Israel’s attack on Iran is putting Europe’s commitment to multilateralism and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty to a real test. ELN Policy & Research Director Oliver Meier writes that those countries still believing in multilateralism can bring their political, economic, and military clout to protect and strengthen the global non-proliferation regime. They must come down from the fence from which they have been observing the conflict and engage on the side of diplomacy and international law.
On Thursday night, Israel launched massive strikes on Iran, targeting its nuclear programme and military leaders. This came two days before the US and Iran were supposed to resume direct talks on finding a diplomatic agreement to curb Iran’s nuclear programme. Jane Kinninmont writes that while the short-term repercussions are highly uncertain, there may be more certainty about the long-term ones: this is hugely undermining to nuclear diplomacy and non-proliferation in general.
Talks between Tehran and Washington are set to take place on Saturday in Oman. Hamidreza Azizi writes that much of Iran’s political spectrum is cautiously optimistic about negotiations, reflecting a recognition of Iran’s military and economic constraints, and a desire to avoid war while securing relief from crippling sanctions. This pragmatic approach may signal a rare opportunity to pursue a deal that addresses concerns over Iran’s nuclear program while averting another regional conflict, but the potential for miscalculation remains high.
The European Leadership Network can provide journalists with expert advice and commentary on key developments on Iran. For media advice or to speak to one of our experts or network members, call +44 (0)203 176 2550 or email [email protected].