An Iranian flag is pictured at the United Nations headquarters in New York, Jan. 8, 2020.(Xinhua/Li Muzi)

"In doing so, our three countries are not joining a campaign to implement maximum pressure against Iran. Our hope is to bring Iran back into full compliance with its commitments under the JCPOA," foreign ministers of France, Britain and Germany said in a joint statement.

PARIS, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- France, Britain and Germany announced on Tuesday that they have triggered the dispute mechanism set up in the 2015 Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA) with the hope to preserve the deal and bring Iran back into full compliance with its commitments.

"We do this in good faith with the overarching objective of preserving the JCPOA and in the sincere hope of finding a way forward to resolve the impasse through constructive diplomatic dialogue, while preserving the agreement and remaining within its framework," foreign ministers of the three countries said in a joint statement.

"In doing so, our three countries are not joining a campaign to implement maximum pressure against Iran. Our hope is to bring Iran back into full compliance with its commitments under the JCPOA," it added.

France, Germany and Britain reiterated their determination to work with all participants to preserve the deal. "We remain convinced that this landmark multilateral international agreement and its non-proliferation benefits enhance our shared security interests and strengthen the rules-based international order," said the statement.

"Given recent events, it is all the more important that we do not add a nuclear proliferation crisis to the current escalation threatening the whole region," it concluded.

Since its unilateral exit from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, Washington has been mounting pressure on Tehran through a series of sanctions. Iran has maintained a tough stance and scaled back its nuclear commitments in response.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell Fontelles attends a press conference after an EU foreign ministers' meeting on mideast situation at the EU headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 10, 2020. (Xinhua/Zheng Huansong)

For the EU side, Josep Borrel, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said that he got a letter from the three countries "referring a matter concerning the implementation of Iran's commitments under" the Iran nuclear agreement, for resolution through the Dispute Resolution Mechanism, as set out in the nuclear agreement.

Borrel said he would oversee the dispute resolution mechanism process.

"In light of the ongoing dangerous escalations in the Middle East, the preservation of the JCPOA is now more important than ever," Borrel said in the statement.■