France, the United Kingdom, and Germany jointly threatened to reimpose sanctions on Iran at the end of August if Tehran does not resume negotiations with the west over its nuclear program.

The trio of European countries, known as the E3, announced their willingness to trigger “snapback” sanctions against Iran in connection with the 2015 nuclear deal in a letter to United Nations leaders dated last Friday.

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French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot posted the letter on Wednesday, which was also signed by U.K. Secretary of State David Lammy and German Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs Johann Wadephul.

“We have made it clear that if Iran is not willing to reach a diplomatic solution before the end of August 2025, or does not seize the opportunity of an extension, E3 are prepared to trigger the snapback mechanism,” the letter said. “Iran’s proliferation crisis cannot be removed from the [UN Security Council’s] agenda at a moment when the risks that Iran’s nuclear program poses to international peace and security are not mitigated, and nuclear activities with no credible civilian justification are ongoing.”

The group of leaders make up the only three European countries that are signatories to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), or Iran nuclear deal, in which Tehran agreed to limit its nuclear program and have regular international inspectors check their facilities in exchange for sanctions relief and other provisions. The deal was signed in 2015, adopted in 2016, and President Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from it in 2018.

Any of the countries that are a part of the deal can trigger the automatic, or “snapback,” resumption of U.N. sanctions that had been lifted as a part of the deal if they rule that Iran is in non-compliance.

In their letter, the top diplomats from the E3 said that they “have unambiguous legal grounds” to restart the sanctions.

A key date in the negotiations is Oct. 18, 2025, the 10th anniversary of the deal and the deadline for determining whether to extend or terminate the mechanism for them to implement the snapback sanctions outlined in U.N. Security Council Resolution 2231.

The E3 letter comes roughly two months after Israel and the United States bombed Iran’s nuclear program in June. Israel and Iran’s war lasted for 12 days, while the U.S. operation took place in one night.

Israel targeted several Iranian nuclear scientists, their nuclear facilities, ballistic missile arsenal, and more, while the U.S.’s operation specifically targeted three nuclear sites that were harder to destroy.

Trump administration officials maintain that Iran’s nuclear program was “totally obliterated,” though Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell has acknowledged the Pentagon believes their program was set back between 1-2 years.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian suspended Iran’s cooperation on July 3 with the International Atomic Energy Agency, the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, following the attacks. Without their insights, it’s unknown the exact level of destruction of their nuclear program.

UN NUCLEAR WATCHDOG DEPUTY TO VISIT IRAN FOR FIRST TIME SINCE US STRIKES

The deputy head of the IAEA traveled to Iran this week for the first time since the war, but did not inspect any of Iran’s facilities during the visit.

The E3 foreign ministers and the EU High Representative met with their Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, in Geneva on June 20, and lower-level officials met again in July in Istanbul to discuss Iran’s nuclear program.