Iran Nuclear Talks Likely to Be Extended

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Iran Nuclear Talks Likely to Be Extended - Ryabkov

RIA Novosti, PUBLISHED 18.07.2014

Iran and the six world powers agree that the talks on a comprehensive deal that would curb Tehran’s controversial nuclear drive should continue past the current deadline, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Wednesday.

"Our common opinion is that the work on the agreement needs more time… and it’s not a matter of just few days," Ryabkov, who represents Russia at the current talks in Vienna, told RIA Novosti.

"I expect the talks to continue for more than several weeks," Ryabkov said, adding that the sides were still in a deadlock over several key issues.

The diplomat said a decision on nuclear talks extension could be adopted on Thursday.

The final sixth round of negotiations between the six world powers — US, UK, France, Germany, Russia and China — and Iran has been underway in Vienna since July 2, with the parties hoping to reach an agreement by July 20.

The deadline for an agreement on guarantees of exclusively peaceful character of Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for a step-by-step lifting of international sanctions against Tehran was set by the participants of the talks in Geneva in November 2013.

A source in the Iranian delegation told RIA Novosti earlier that parties were already considering an extension to reach an agreement despite the current deadline being three days away.

"The [current round] of negotiations will be over on Friday. Iran, the United States and the European Union are discussing the issue of extending the deadline for reaching the [comprehensive nuclear] agreement," the source said.

Following intensive negotiations, US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif agreed on half of the final draft for Teheran’s nuclear program deal.

While the head of Iran’s foreign ministry underlined that the text of the document is "50 percent ready," John Kerry added that "very real gaps" still remained despite the "tangible progress” towards the final agreement. The officials did not exclude a possibility of extending the deadline.

One of the main roadblocks in the talks appears to be Iran’s uranium enrichment program. The Islamic Republic has been vying to expand the number of centrifuges needed to enrich uranium, while the US has been working to further slash it from the current 19,000, of which only 10,000 are operable. Iran says it needs as many as 50,000 centrifuges.

Topics: Asia, Iran

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