The ongoing negotiations between Iran and six major world powers over Tehran’s controversial nuclear program may go into April 1, missing the deadline. Earlier, the Russian Foreign Minister said talks had a high chance of producing a deal.
“Iran does not want a nuclear deal just for the sake of having a deal, and a final deal should guarantee the Iranian nation’s nuclear rights,” senior nuclear negotiator Hamid Baidinejad told reporters. “We will continue the talks until we reach an agreement over disputed issues.”
A top US official has also acknowledged that tough talks with Iran may go past the midnight deadline into Wednesday.
“We will of course keep working if we are continuing to make progress, including into tomorrow, if it’s useful to do so. At this time, no decisions have been made about our travel schedule,” the official said as cited by AFP.
French Foreign Affairs Minister Laurent Fabius has also said talks have been progressing, but has not ruled out that the P5+1 group may negotiate through the night.
“We are moving forward, but it’s complicated, it’s long, difficult and I fear that we will spend the night (negotiating),” Fabius told reporters.
The German delegation source also said it was “too early to think about stopping the clock.”
“But that may be necessary,” Reuters quoted him as saying.
“The mood is back and forth, a difficult struggle for a realistic solution that is acceptable to both sides,” a German delegation source said. “It remains an open question whether we will succeed.”
Even though negotiations may have to go later than expected, the overall mood in Lausanne is positive.
Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said there were “quite promising prospects” of reaching the deal, but he stressed, “there is never 100 percent certainty.”
“We have an opportunity to realize our chances if no party to the negotiations tries to raise the stakes at the last moment to get something extra instead of keeping a balance of interests,” Lavrov stressed during a joint media conference with his Vanuatu counterpart Sato Kilman.
via Iran ready to continue nuclear talks ‘until deal reached,’ Russia says chances ‘high’ — RT News.
