Germany supports maintaining Iran nuclear deal – Merkel to Rouhani

In a phone call on Thursday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that she supports maintaining the Iranian nuclear accord despite the withdrawal of the US. Merkel specified that the deal will only remain in power if Tehran upholds its side of the deal, the chancellor’s office said. The German leader also called for talks to be held in a broader format on Iran's ballistic missile program and its regional activities in Syria, Yemen and elsewhere. Rouhani, for his part, assured Merkel that the country is not looking to increase tensions in the Middle East, and is working to promote stability and security in the region instead. Iranian involvement led to “relative security in Syria and good level of stability in Iraq, which is in the interest… of the whole international community, including Europe,” Rouhani said, as cited by the Iranian president’s website. Also on Thursday, the Iranian government issued a statement, reiterating that Tehran will remain in the nuclear deal, pending talks on the future of the accord with its other signatories (Russia, China, the UK, France, Germany and the EU). However, it stressed that no part of the 2015 agreement is up for negotiation.