With US-Iran talks stalled, diplomatic efforts expand to unlikely European players
- US and Iranian talks have stalled, prompting the Trump administration to broaden its diplomatic outreach beyond traditional channels.
- Iran is still in contact with Oman, Pakistan, Turkey and Qatar, but those efforts have been uneven and unpredictable.
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Austria's foreign minister and spoke with Greece's foreign minister, and both European ministers later spoke with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
- Analysts said the contacts by Austria and Greece appeared to be less formal mediation than a push to encourage both sides back toward talks.
- The diplomacy is unfolding as the United States and Iran both seek leverage over the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil shipping route.
With talks between the United States and Iran stalled, the Trump administration has broadened its diplomatic outreach to include European countries that are not usually central to such efforts. The article says Austria and Greece have become part of that wider contact pattern after Rubio met or spoke with their foreign ministers this week.
According to the report, the European ministers then spoke with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi shortly afterward. The State Department said it had not asked either minister to deliver messages to Iran, but it did acknowledge that Iran came up in Rubio's discussions.
Analysts quoted in the piece said these contacts should not be seen as full mediation, but rather as attempts to nudge both sides back toward negotiations. The push comes as the conflict has broader economic effects, including pressure around the Strait of Hormuz, through which a large share of the world's oil normally passes.
美伊谈判停滞后，外交斡旋扩大到不太寻常的欧洲角色
随着美伊谈判陷入停滞，特朗普政府开始扩大外交接触范围，把一些通常不处于斡旋核心位置的欧洲国家也纳入进来。报道说，奥地利和希腊成为这一更广泛接触的一部分，原因是卢比奥本周分别会见或通话了两国外长。
报道称，这两位欧洲外长随后很快又与伊朗外长阿拉格齐通了话。美国国务院表示，并未要求他们向伊朗传话，但承认卢比奥的相关会谈中确实提到了伊朗。
文中受访分析人士认为，这些接触不应被视为正式调停，更像是推动双方回到谈判桌前的尝试。报道同时指出，冲突已带来更广泛的经济影响，其中包括围绕霍尔木兹海峡的压力；该海峡通常承载着全球相当大比例的石油运输。