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EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, where the two discussed diplomatic routes to ending the war between the United States and Iran and fully reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
In a post on X after the meeting, Kallas said ships should not have to pay to pass through the strait once the conflict ends. She noted that no tolls or fees were charged before the war, and said navigation must be “free and unimpeded” in both Hormuz and the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea.
Kallas also said she had raised repression inside Iran with Araghchi, pointing to a sharp rise in executions and death sentences.
Kallas’s meeting came as US and Iranian negotiators held indirect talks on the sidelines of the Assembly.
US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner took part on the American side, and Araghchi led for Iran. Witkoff said the sides had “successfully completed a round of discussions,” and another is expected soon.
In his address to the General Assembly, US President Donald Trump said he faced a “big decision” over whether to strike a deal with Iran. But the gap remains wide.
Iran’s parliament has approved rules to fine ships that cross the strait without authorisation, which runs against Kallas’s call for toll-free passage.
Iranian-backed Houthi forces have also stepped up attacks on Saudi Arabia, opening a second front in the war that began in February.
Iran accuses Europe of ‘double standards’
Araghchi has also met Dutch Foreign Minister Tom de Bruijn in New York, according to his Telegram channel.
During the meeting, Araghchi strongly criticised “the double standards of European countries” concerning regional developments, pointing specifically to their silence and appeasement regarding the “aggressive actions and crimes” committed by the US and Israel against Iran, the statement noted.
“The foreign minister [Araghchi] noted that European nations cannot, on the one hand, claim to uphold the rule of law and human rights while, on the other, remaining indifferent to – or even supporting – blatant military aggression by the US and Israel against Iran,” it added.
De Bruijn emphasised the importance of diplomacy and outlined his country’s perspectives on ongoing regional developments and interactions between Iran and Europe.
The European External Action Service says Kallas has come to New York with a clear and united message: international law and the UN Charter must be upheld, sovereignty and territorial integrity must be respected, and violations of international law must not go unpunished.
Kallas, European Council President António Costa and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen represented the bloc at the eighth trilateral meeting with the African Union and the United Nations on Sunday, and the three also held talks with UN Secretary-General António Guterres.
On Tuesday, the three EU leaders attended the opening of the General Debate. Kallas then co-hosted a high-level event on global food security and the Black Sea with Ukraine, France and Romania. On Wednesday, she co-hosts the annual meeting of EU and Latin American and Caribbean (CELAC) foreign ministers with Uruguay’s foreign minister, as well as a ministerial event on maritime security.
This year’s session is taking place under the theme “Restoring trust, managing transformation: a United Nations that delivers for all”.
Almost 130 heads of state and government are expected to speak during the General Debate, which runs until 28 September.