ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The diplomatic chiefs of the E3 and the European Union on Friday met with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Geneva, urging Tehran to keep the discussions open and continue negotiations with Washington, amid the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict.

Iran has traded strikes with Israel in the past week following a large-scale Israeli offensive seeking to cripple its burgeoning nuclear program, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accusing Tehran of “marching very quickly” toward the production of a nuclear weapon.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Araghchi maintained that Iran’s nuclear program is peaceful, expressing “grave concern” over the E3 and EU’s failure to condemn the Israeli attacks.

“Iran is ready to consider diplomacy once again – once the aggression is stopped and the aggressor is held accountable for the crimes committed,” said Araghchi.

“We support the continuation of discussion with the E3 and EU, and expressed our readiness to meet again in the near future,” he added.

The escalations came days before Tehran and Washington were set to enter a sixth round of nuclear talks, mediated by Oman. The meeting was cancelled in light of the attacks.

“We need to keep the discussions with Tehran open,” said EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas in a presser after the meeting. “We agreed that we will discuss nuclear but also broader issues that we have and keep the discussion open.”

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said that they reiterated Europe’s position that “Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”

“We are keen to continue ongoing discussions and negotiations with Iran and we urge Iran to continue their talks with the United States,” said Lammy.

“This is a perilous moment and it is hugely important that we don’t see regional escalation of this conflict,” he added.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said they held “serious negotiations,” with the Iranian top diplomat, adding that the Europeans will share a joint statement about the meeting in the coming hours.

“The good result today is that we leave the room with the impression that Iran is ready to further discuss these questions,” Wadephul added.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said that the parties have agreed to continue dialogue on the matter, telling reporters: “There could be no purely military solution to the challenge posed by Iran’s nuclear program.”

French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday urged Israel to halt its military operations against Iranian targets not linked to nuclear activities or ballistic missile programs, adding that he has asked Barrot to take an initiative with European partners, “to propose a demanding negotiated settlement that would put an end to the conflict.”

US President Donald Trump on Thursday announced he will decide on whether the US will join Israel in striking Iran “within the next two weeks,” emphasizing that there are “substantial” chances for negotiations with Tehran.