Egypt, Kuwait urge return to US-Iran negotiations, de-escalation

Egypt, Kuwait urge return to US-Iran negotiations, de-escalation Egyptian foreign minister Badr Abdelatty and his Kuwaiti counterpart Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah called for de-escalation and a return to diplomacy and negotiations between Iran and the United States during a phone call, according to Egypt's Foreign Ministry. The two ministers discussed rapidly evolving regional developments and ways to contain the current escalation, the Egyptian ministry said in a statement. They agreed that de-escalation and the resumption of negotiations between Iran and the United States should be a priority, highlighting the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by Iran and the United States on June 18 as a framework to restart talks and reach political solutions that could spare the region further tension and instability, it added. The ministers also exchanged views on regional security concerns and called for addressing all sources of tension in ways that promote regional security and stability, the statement said. Under the MoU to end the war in the region, Tehran and Washington were scheduled to hold negotiations within 60 days, which ended on Aug. 17, to reach a final agreement. The fate of the talks remains unclear following the escalation between the two countries last month. (Reporting by Reuters)