Daily Times

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday proposed a video summit with the United States, Britain, France, China, Germany and Iran in a bid to avoid “confrontation and escalation” at the United Nations, where Washington is trying to extend an arms embargo on Tehran. “The issue is urgent,” Putin said in a statement, adding that the alternative was “only further escalation of tensions, increasing risk of conflict – such a scenario must be avoided.” The 15-member U.N. Security Council will announce later on Friday the result of a vote on a US-drafted resolution to extend the weapons ban. Diplomats say it is bound to fail and put the fate of a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers further at risk. If the United States is unsuccessful it has threatened to trigger a return of all U.N. sanctions on Iran using a provision in the nuclear deal, known as snapback, even though Washington quit the accord in 2018. Diplomats say the United States could try to do this as early as next week.