Top EU diplomat Kaja Kallas said Monday that the world does not “need another war” when asked about potential U.S. military strikes on Iran.
– “The situation around Iran is very intense,” Kallas told reporters on her way into a gathering of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. “We don’t need another war in this region. We already have a lot, so we have stressed the diplomatic way out of this.”
– U.S. President Donald Trump has said he’s considering limited strikes to force Iran to end its nuclear program.
– But the president also told advisers that he could launch a broader campaign aimed at driving Tehran’s leaders from power, according to the New York Times, which cited people briefed on Trump’s deliberations.
– The U.S. has built up its forces in the region, although Washington is still pursuing a potential deal with Tehran, with Trump-appointed negotiator Steve Witkoff telling Fox News on Saturday that the president was “curious” about “why they [Iran] haven’t capitulated.”
– Iran, in turn, has threatened to strike U.S. bases if attacked.
– With few forces in the region, the role of European powers has mostly been to watch from the sidelines — though Kallas stressed that the EU shares U.S. concerns about Iran’s nuclear ambitions and its ballistic missile program, adding: “It’s true that Iran is at its weakest point that they have been.”
– But Kallas called for avoiding direct conflict: “We should really be using this time to find a diplomatic solution.”