Lavrov, Blinken discuss Iran nuclear deal

Lavrov, Blinken discuss Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on phone as Iranian foreign minister arrives in Moscow

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed the restoration of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran nuclear deal, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a phone call on Wednesday.

The conversation was initiated by the US, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its official website.

"The counterparts exchanged views on the prospects for restoring the full implementation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action for the settlement of the Iranian Nuclear Program (JCPOA), and also discussed a number of topical issues on the bilateral agenda," it said.

The conversation took place ahead of Lavrov's meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, who arrived in Moscow earlier on Wednesday for talks with his Russian counterpart.

Delegations from the JCPOA's signatories, the UK, France, Germany, Russia, and China launched efforts in April to bring Tehran and Washington, which abandoned the deal in 2018, back into its fold.

After the June 18 election victory of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, these negotiations in Vienna were suspended.

In the talks, Iran demands that all Western sanctions be lifted, while its interlocutors seek to reinstate controls on its nuclear program.