TEHRAN - Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian and European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell addressed the talks aimed at renewing the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement – JCPOA- and lifting sanctions against the Islamic Republic.

Amir Abdollahian and Borrell spoke on the phone on Monday night.

Those talks began in April 2021, three years after the United States dropped out of the nuclear deal. The talks, however, have been stalled for several months due to what Iran believes is a lack of political will on the part of the U.S. to honor its obligations under the agreement.

They also discussed Iran's collaboration with the International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA.

Borrell had previously told reporters in Brussels that the EU will continue its attempts to obtain an agreement on the restoration of the deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA.

Borrell talked of a "deadlock" in the JCPOA revival negotiations, but noted that the EU will continue to function as the talks' coordinator despite the difficulties.

This issue is unrelated to other concerns that the EU is worried about, he stated.

The senior EU diplomat made the remarks after the EU slapped further sanctions on Iran for what it called a crackdown on protesters, targeting 29 people and three entities.

After the young woman Mahsa Amini died on September 16, demonstrations started but quickly devolved into violence and destruction.

Iran has denounced foreign powers, including the U.S., UK, Saudi Arabia, and Israel, of supporting rioters and blaming them for the unrest.

The Islamic Republic has guaranteed a stern response to anybody threatening the Iranian people's security.

Iraqi FM insists territory must never be used to threaten neighbors

On Monday, the foreign ministers of Iran and Iraq also spoke about the IRGC attacks on militant groups hiding in Iraq's Kurdistan region.

Amir Abdollahian also congratulated Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein on his re-appointment as the country’s chief diplomat.

The Iranian foreign minister expressed delight over the formation of new the Iraqi government led by Prime Minister Mohammad al-Sudani and reaffirmed the Islamic Republic's desire to expand relations with Iraq.

He emphasized the importance of security in the region and bilateral relations, saying, "Despite the two nations' privileged connections, the Islamic Republic of Iran does not expect to be threatened by the Kurdistan Region, and the central government is accountable for these moves."

Amir Abdollahian stressed the importance of sticking to the outcomes of the security negotiations in order to maintain mutual security.

The Iraqi foreign minister expressed satisfaction with the degree of ties between the two nations and stated, "Baghdad does not allow its neighbors to be threatened from the Iraqi soil," citing collaboration between Baghdad and Teheran as a guarantee for shared security.

The two countries' foreign ministers focused on multilateral regional cooperation as they went through the course and outcomes of the negotiations between Iran and Saudi Arabia.

So far, Iraq has hosted five rounds of talks between Iran and Saudi Arabia. The talks were held at security level.

Iran, Qatar FMs hold talks on World Cup, JCPOA

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, the foreign minister of Qatar, and Amir Abdollahian also exchanged views on bilateral and global matters as well as the current state of negotiations on the JCPOA.

Amir Abdollahian expressed Iran's support for World Cup football matches in reference to the arrival of the Iranian national football team in Qatar's capital Doha on Monday night to compete in the FIFA World Cup 2022.

He also wished the Qatari government success in hosting these championships.

Qatar's foreign minister, for his part, expressed happiness with the presence of the Iranian national football team in Doha, praised Iran's unwavering support, and wished the Iranian national team luck in the tournaments.