Iran nuclear talks to continue
July 7, 2015
"We are continuing to negotiate for the next couple of days. This does not mean we are extending our deadline," Federica Mogherini, the EU's chief diplomat, said Tuesday.
Iran and the P5+1 - Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States – reached a draft deal on Tehran's nuclear program on April 2 in Lausanne. After missing the initial deadline of June 30 last week, both sides gave themselves until July 7 to reach the final agreement and end the 13-year standoff.
"I told you one week ago more or less, we are interpreting in a flexible way our deadline, which means that we are taking the time, the days we still need, to finalize the agreement," Mogherini said.
Earlier today, US State Department spokesman John Kirby told reporters in Washington that Tuesday should not to be perceived as a deadline. "It was an extension of basically seven days of the parameters" of an April 2 framework accord struck in Lausanne, he added. As far as Tuesday was concerned, "Everybody is still, I think, rowing on the oars here to try to get a deal done, but it's got to be the right deal," Kirby argued.
The EU diplomat expressed optimism about the talks and said the deal is "something which is still possible even if we are now getting into the difficult time."
"I am here to stay, to continue together with all the teams, all the six teams are here," she added.
US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif have been in Vienna since June 27 working on the deal.
An Iranian spokesman told the AFP news agency that for his delegation there is "no deadline."
No 'sacred dates'
Abbas Araghchi, deputy foreign minister and a member of Iran's negotiating team, said last month that an additional time would be required to settle the dispute.
"The date… was selected for the end of negotiations but we will not sacrifice a good agreement for the sake of schedule," Araghchi was quoted as saying by Iran's state television. "If we need a few extra days, it is not important because there are no sacred dates," he added.
A potential deal would lift the Western sanctions on Iran and place long-term limits on Iran's civilian nuclear program, making it difficult for the Islamic country to make nuclear weapons.
Iran denies allegations from the West that it has the capabilities to produce nuclear weapons.
shs/kms (Reuters, dpa, AFP)