Germany's Baerbock has 'frank' talk with Iranian foreign minister

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock spoke on the phone with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian on Wednesday, Baerbock's ministry announced.
The conversation was "frank, forthright and clear" and discussed the "different attitudes" between Germany and Iran on a number of topics, the German Foreign Office said in a post to social media on Thursday.
It was the first conversation between Baerbock and Abdollahian since February 2022, when they met during the Munich Security Conference.
Baerbock, who is currently on a multi-day visit to the United States, said the discussion with her Iranian counterpart focused in particular on "German consular cases."
Several Germans are currently imprisoned in Iran.
These include the German-Iranian Nahid Taghavi, who was arrested in October 2020 and convicted of alleged "propaganda against the state."
Another German-Iranian, Jamshid Sharmahd, has been sentenced to death on terror charges. It is feared that Iran may actually carry out the execution of Sharmahd. His relatives vehemently deny the accusations.
Baerbock has repeatedly called on Tehran to reverse the "absolutely unacceptable" and arbitrary sentence against him.
Relations between Germany and Iran are strained. Baerbock has been an outspoken critic of the Iranian regime's violent crackdown on protesters. Iran has accused Baerbock and the German government of trying to interfere in internal affairs.