France ( Europe Brief News): France, with European allies, is preparing a diplomatic initiative aimed at brokering a negotiated end to the escalating Iran-Israel conflict, Macron’s office said.
Without providing specifics about the plan, Macron instructed Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot to draft “an initiative with close European partners that would propose a demanding negotiated settlement to put an end to the conflict” in the next few days during a meeting of the national security council.
Since Israel initiated significant airstrikes on Iran on Friday, Barrot has maintained regular communication with his counterparts in Germany and Britain.
All three nations participated in negotiations that resulted in a historic nuclear agreement between Iran and international powers in 2015, which called for lifting sanctions in exchange for a reduction in Tehran’s nuclear programs.
During the first term of President Donald Trump, the United States pulled out of that agreement.
He voiced
“concern over the current escalation, with Israeli strikes increasingly hitting targets not linked to Iran’s nuclear or ballistic programme, and a mounting number of civilian victims in Iran and Israel”,
his office said.
He said it was
“necessary to urgently end these military operations, which pose significant threats to regional security”,
it added.
According to the Elysee, the French president also asked the foreign ministry to take action to assist French nationals who wanted to leave Iran or Israel in doing so.
How might France’s proposed initiative influence the Iran-Israel conflict?
By offering a diplomatic framework aiming at de-escalation and a negotiated settlement, France’s planned European attempt to end the Iran-Israel dispute could have an impact on the situation and could stop future violence from escalating.
President Macron has signaled a move away from armed conflict and toward diplomacy by calling for a ceasefire and stressing the need to stop attacks on civilian facilities.
France hopes to supplement and support any ceasefire initiatives spearheaded by the United States by uniting European partners in a shared diplomatic endeavor, which might increase international pressure on Israel and Iran to hold negotiations.
A durable truce is difficult to achieve, though, because of the conflict’s underlying complexity, including Israel’s intention to seriously harm Iran’s nuclear capabilities and Iran’s need to preserve its reputation at home through retribution.
