By John Irish and Parisa Hafezi

PARIS (Reuters) -France, Britain and Germany will hold face-to-face talks with Iran on Friday for the first time since U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in June, aiming to gauge Tehran's appetite for a compromise to avert sanctions, diplomats say.

The three European countries, along with China and Russia, are the remaining parties to a 2015 deal - from which the U.S. withdrew in 2018 - that lifted sanctions on Iran in return for restrictions on its nuclear programme.

Friday's talks between senior diplomats from the so-called E3 group and Iran's negotiating team will be held in Istanbul.

The United States held five rounds of talks with Iran prior to its airstrikes in June, which U.S. President Donald Trump, said had "obliterated" a programme that Washington and its ally Israel say is aimed at acquiring a nuclear bomb. Iran denies seeking a nuclear weapon.

European and Iranian diplomats say there is no prospect of Iran re-engaging with the U.S. at the........

© Al Monitor