During the period following the
accession of the United Kingdom to the European Communities in 1973 and prior to
Brexit in 2020, the terms EU3 or E3 were commonly used to describe the three largest economies of the European Union: France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. Since Brexit, the term "E3" is commonly used to describe the same countries, the three largest economies in western Europe, in a non-European Union context. The three countries often co-operate in the E3 format, especially on topics like the Iranian nuclear program, and have issued joint statements in relation to the
2026 Israeli–United States strikes on Iran. They remain the most active European supporters of Ukraine following the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Negotiations with Iran ,
Sa'dabad Palace, Tehran, October 2003 In 2003, France, Germany and the UK launched negotiations attempting to limit the
Iranian nuclear program, which led to the Tehran Declaration of 21 October 2003 and the voluntary Paris Agreement of 15 November 2004.
EU 3 + 3, more commonly referred to as the
E3+3, refers to a grouping which includes the EU-3 and
China,
Russia, and the
United States. It was coined when these states joined the EU diplomatic efforts with Iran in 2006. In the United States and Russia, it is more commonly known as
P5+1, which refers to the five permanent members of the
UN Security Council plus Germany. Italy took part in a number of these meetings between 2006 and 2007. In 2014, under the request of the Italian PM
Matteo Renzi, Foreign Minister
Federica Mogherini was named High Representative of the EU as the negotiations approached a conclusion and came to an end with the elaboration of the
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in 2015. == See also ==