German foreign minister stresses ‘bond’ at start of tense US visit

Washington  – German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas stressed the “bond” between his country and the US upon arrival in Washington on Tuesday for talks that look set to be dominated by US policy towards Iran.

“Our bond with the United States is close and deep, even if our opinions differ in some areas,” said Maas.

As such, Maas said, it is crucial to keep dialogue open.

Transatlantic relations are however subject to “change,” he added.

Maas is set to meet on Wednesday with his freshly inaugurated counterpart Mike Pompeo – who laid out in a Monday speech his strategy on Iran, combining calls for peace in the Middle East with threats of “unprecedented financial pressure” on Tehran – as well as President Donald Trump’s security advisor John Bolton.

Maas will meet congressional representatives later Tuesday.

Pompeo laid out his road map two weeks after Trump’s announced he would cancel US participation in the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Germany, France and Britain have been fighting to save the 2015 deal with Tehran, which offered the Middle Eastern country economic benefits in return for Iran’s commitments to halt what the West feared was a nuclear weapons programme. The deal’s other signatories, China and Russia, also want to maintain it.

The trip will be Maas’ third official visit since he assumed office in mid-March, but his first to Washington. The previous trips were to New York because Pomeo only took up his post at the end of April. Pompeo’s predecessor Rex Tillerson was fired one day before Maas was sworn in.