The closure of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran will be a huge threat,

so the EU foreign ministers will discuss the possibilities of a diplomatic solution to the conflict, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas said upon arrival at the meeting of the EU foreign ministers.

"The ministers are very much focused on the diplomatic solution. Also, the concerns of retaliation - as this war is escalating - are huge. Especially closing of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran is something that would be extremely dangerous and not good for anybody," Kallas said.

Kallas also allowed for new EU sanctions against Iran to ensure that Iran does not resume its nuclear program.

"We are in the JCPOA [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action], we have obligations in place, and, of course, we have this sanctions package mechanism, which puts all sanction back [on Iran] if there are no improvements, [on the situation with the nuclear program]. And, of course, that would mean that Iran’s economy is not really doing well, and it is not good for the Iranian people. Definitely, if the nuclear program is something Iran should not have, we have to work towards that," she said.

Otherwise, according to her, the EU advocates for diplomacy and a diplomatic solution.

In her statements, Kallas never mentioned the other side of the conflict - Israel and the United States.

JCPOA and commitments

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue was signed in 2015 by Iran, Russia, China, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and France. The coordinator of the multi-year negotiations that culminated in the signing of this document was the head of the EU diplomatic service Federica Mogherini. This document prescribed step-by-step actions for Iran to abandon its military nuclear program, confirming its right to peaceful nuclear energy. It prescribed mechanisms for monitoring the implementation of these steps by the IAEA and reciprocal steps by the EU and the United States to gradually lift sanctions against Iran. The JCPOA was in fact destroyed by the US in 2018, when the first Donald Trump administration announced its withdrawal from the agreement with the intention of "negotiating a better deal for the US," which was never done. Israel actively pushed the US to withdraw from the JCPOA.

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