Later on Thursday, Iranian Ambassador to the IAEA Reza Najafi described as positive and constructive Amano’s meetings with the Islamic Republic officials, saying the visit paved the ground for outlining the approaches and addressing the concerns of Tehran and the agency in a climate of interaction and understanding.
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Iran’s main opposition group, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), last week published a 28-page report stating that Iran has been trying to keep its nuclear infrastructure intact and retain the capability to produce a nuclear weapon.
“If we reach a deal, both sides should be committed to it”, said the president, who is a strong advocate of the treaty but has less power than Khamenei. At the end of 2013, President Obama repeated the administration’s position: “We know they don’t need an underground, fortified facility like Fordo in order to have a peaceful program”.
Iran and the sextet are in talks to hammer out a lasting agreement to end more than a decade of impasse over Tehran’s civilian nuclear program.
The IAEA report said that stockpile was just under that level as of Tuesday.
Tuesday was the official deadline to reach a long-term deal that would build on the preliminary agreement. Russian Federation and the United States are negotiating alongside Britain, France, Germany and China.
Washington, as the superpower most at odds with Tehran, has played a central role. Both face scepticism from powerful hardliners at home in countries that have been enemies since Iranian revolutionaries stormed the US Embassy in Tehran in 1979.
Agonising talks towards a grand bargain nuclear deal between Iran and major powers looked set Thursday to drag into the weekend and beyond, with stubborn differences still separating the two sides in Vienna.
Stephen F. Hayes of the Weekly Standard has listed some of the many contradictory statements made by American leaders about Iran’s nuclear program.
Hammond had a morning meeting with USA Secretary of State John Kerry, who also consulted top diplomats from China, France, Germany and the European Union. “I think there is high possibility”.
Speaking at the Vienna-based Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said all participants had “the serious intention to finalize a deal”, but cited numerous unresolved issues.
Economic interests also play a role in Moscow’s support for a nuclear deal, even if the lifting of sanctions trigged by an agreement would hurt Russian Federation in the short run.
“Ultimately this is going to be up to the Iranians” to follow the global community’s requirements, he said.
The State Department announced that talks have been extended to July 7. If the deal comes in after that, Congress can take 60 days.
Major issues still yet to be agreed include monitoring and verification steps to ensure that Iran does not cheat on any agreement as well as the pace and timing of sanctions relief. But, he stressed that there were still a number of unresolved issues.
A big sticking point is Western demands that United Nations inspectors have access to Iranian military sites and nuclear scientists.
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Amano’s visit to Tehran at Iran’s invitation is aimed at jump-starting a stalled global probe.
