Mike Pompeo in Brussels for Iran talks as tensions escalate

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in Brussels for emergency talks on Iran, following a series of escalations in tensions over the weekend.

Mr Pompeo is hoping to join foreign ministers from France, Germany and the UK who are meeting in Brussels on Monday to discuss Iran’s recent threat to breach commitments of the 2015 nuclear deal.

The three ministers and the EU’s top diplomat Federica Mogherini will discuss their response to Iran’s announcement on Wednesday that it intended to abandon commitments to the agreement.

Prior to the meeting, Ms Mogherini said she was made aware of Mr Pompeo’s travel plans overnight and the bloc would attempt to accommodate a meeting with him.

“We will be here all day with a busy agenda. So we will see during the day how and if will manage to arrange a meeting,” she told reporters. “He’s always welcome obviously, but there are no precise plans at the moment.”

Mr Pompeo’s trip to Brussels comes amid escalating tensions between the two rivals. On Saturday the US deployed a Patriot missile-defence system to the Arabian Gulf, citing an unspecified threat to US forces in the region, a claim Iran authorities dismissed as nonsense.