European powers vowed to keep the 2015 nuclear deal alive without the United States by trying to keep Iran's oil and investment flowing, but admitted they would struggle to provide the guarantees Tehran seeks.
The British, French and German foreign ministers and the EU's top diplomat discussed the next steps with the Iranian foreign minister on Tuesday, a week after U.S. President Donald Trump abandoned the pact he branded "the worst deal ever" and reimposed U.S. sanctions on Iran.
EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini told a news conference the meeting had been positive, with all parties agreeing on "lines of actions and measures to put in place" in the wake of the U.S. pullout.
"We all agreed that we have a relative in intensive care and we all want to get him or her out of intensive care as quickly as possible," Mogherini said, adding that all sides had agreed to find practical solutions over the coming weeks.
Those include continuing to sell Iran's oil and gas products, maintaining effective banking transactions and protecting European investments in Iran.
"I cannot talk about legal or economic guarantees but I can talk about serious, determined, immediate work from the European side," Mogherini said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the meeting had been a good start but he wanted to see guarantees materialize.
"We are on the right track. … A lot will depend on what we can do in next few weeks," he said.
Zarif said Washington's decision to exit the deal was "illegal."
Highlighting just how difficult it will be, the U.S. Treasury on Tuesday announced more sanctions, including on Iran's central bank governor, just minutes before the Brussels meeting was due to begin.
Iran's nuclear chief said on Tuesday that the EU should make up for the U.S. withdrawal from the nuclear deal or Iran would ramp up its nuclear program to a level more advanced than before the accord.
"The European signatories should make up for the U.S. withdrawal from [the nuclear deal] and guarantee our rights. If they cannot do that, we are ready to take our nuclear program to a level stronger than before [the deal]," the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, Ali Akbar Salehi, said in an interview on state television.
British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson was blunt about the chances of avoiding U.S. sanctions, which also prohibit foreign companies from doing business with Iran.
"We have to be realistic about the electrified rail, the live wire of American extraterritoriality and how [it] can serve as a deterrent to business," Johnson told reporters.
Russian Acting Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Tuesday that while it was possible to discuss the future of the nuclear deal without the participation of the United States, it would be impossible to preserve the accord without Iran making some concessions.
However, Ryabkov said Moscow does not believe the accord can be amended to include limits on Iran's aspirations in the Middle East or its ballistic missile program, as Trump demands.
Trump denounced the accord, signed under his predecessor Barack Obama, because it does not cover Iran's ballistic missile program, its role in Middle East conflicts or what happens after the deal begins to expire in 2025.
The European powers share Trump's concerns but say the nuclear deal is the best way to prevent Iran from obtaining an atomic weapon.
"What was significant is that Zarif reaffirmed their will to stick to the agreement if we find a way to help them a little," a senior European diplomat said.
European commissioners will discuss sanctions-blocking measures on Wednesday, opening the way for European leaders to discuss the issue at a summit in Sofia, Bulgaria, later in the day.
