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| Iran nuclear talks extend past deadline with new proposals expected | Iran nuclear talks extend past deadline with new proposals expected |
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| Iran was expected to put forward new proposals at international nuclear talks in Switzerland on Wednesday night in an effort to break a deadlock that has taken them 24 hours past their deadline. | Iran was expected to put forward new proposals at international nuclear talks in Switzerland on Wednesday night in an effort to break a deadlock that has taken them 24 hours past their deadline. |
| After seven days of talks in Lausanne, with the last three going late into the night, the German foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, said there would be a meeting of ministers at 8pm to hear Iranian suggestions for ending an impasse that has held up a preliminary accord swapping Iran’s acceptance of constraints on its nuclear programme for sanctions relief. | After seven days of talks in Lausanne, with the last three going late into the night, the German foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, said there would be a meeting of ministers at 8pm to hear Iranian suggestions for ending an impasse that has held up a preliminary accord swapping Iran’s acceptance of constraints on its nuclear programme for sanctions relief. |
| “There will be new proposals tonight,” Steinmeier said on Wednesday. “I can’t predict whether that will be sufficient to reach an agreement in the course of the night. Accuracy is more important than speed. I am of the opinion that a success is still possible.” | “There will be new proposals tonight,” Steinmeier said on Wednesday. “I can’t predict whether that will be sufficient to reach an agreement in the course of the night. Accuracy is more important than speed. I am of the opinion that a success is still possible.” |
| Asked if he thought the collapse of the talks was also a possibility, Steinmeier said: “Of course.” | |
| The talks have been stuck for days over differences in demands on the amount of development work Iran would be permitted to carry out on new centrifuges which would be able to enrich uranium much faster than the existing Iranian model. A further obstacle has been a disagreement over how quickly United Nations sanctions should be lifted. While the Iranian delegation has so far insisted they are all lifted at once, as soon as an agreement is signed, the country’s deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araqchi, suggested on Wednesday that Tehran might accept sanctions relief in stages. | The talks have been stuck for days over differences in demands on the amount of development work Iran would be permitted to carry out on new centrifuges which would be able to enrich uranium much faster than the existing Iranian model. A further obstacle has been a disagreement over how quickly United Nations sanctions should be lifted. While the Iranian delegation has so far insisted they are all lifted at once, as soon as an agreement is signed, the country’s deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araqchi, suggested on Wednesday that Tehran might accept sanctions relief in stages. |
| “Sanctions have originated from various points and we are insisting that in the first step, all economic, banking and oil sanctions must be lifted and other sanctions that are related to other issues should also be determined in a timetable,” Araqchi said. “Unless we have a clear view of what will happen to those sanctions, we can’t go forward.” | “Sanctions have originated from various points and we are insisting that in the first step, all economic, banking and oil sanctions must be lifted and other sanctions that are related to other issues should also be determined in a timetable,” Araqchi said. “Unless we have a clear view of what will happen to those sanctions, we can’t go forward.” |
| Iran’s foreign minister, Mohamad Javad Zarif, rejected the suggestion that the onus was on his delegation to make concessions, suggesting that there were also divisions among the six nations he negotiating with: the US, UK, France, Germany, Russia and China. | Iran’s foreign minister, Mohamad Javad Zarif, rejected the suggestion that the onus was on his delegation to make concessions, suggesting that there were also divisions among the six nations he negotiating with: the US, UK, France, Germany, Russia and China. |
| “We are facing six countries with different positions and interests among themselves and in regards to Iran,” Zarif said. “Coordination between these countries is very difficult but they should know that our people and their representatives in these talks will not accept pressure. There is an opportunity now for them to compensate for their behaviours towards Iranian people but it’s not clear if they will seize this opportunity.” | “We are facing six countries with different positions and interests among themselves and in regards to Iran,” Zarif said. “Coordination between these countries is very difficult but they should know that our people and their representatives in these talks will not accept pressure. There is an opportunity now for them to compensate for their behaviours towards Iranian people but it’s not clear if they will seize this opportunity.” |
| Among the disagreements in the six-nation group is the issue of “snap-backs”, mechanisms in which UN security council sanctions would be automatically re-imposed if Iran violated any agreement. Western nations want the mechanisms as an insurance against cheating, but Russia and China oppose them on the grounds they dilute the power of permanent members of the council. Steinmeier said that Moscow and Beijing had been offered assurances their prerogatives would not be affected. | Among the disagreements in the six-nation group is the issue of “snap-backs”, mechanisms in which UN security council sanctions would be automatically re-imposed if Iran violated any agreement. Western nations want the mechanisms as an insurance against cheating, but Russia and China oppose them on the grounds they dilute the power of permanent members of the council. Steinmeier said that Moscow and Beijing had been offered assurances their prerogatives would not be affected. |
| The US secretary of state, John Kerry, the UK foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, and Steinmeier all signalled they would stay in Switzerland at least until Thursday morning. France’s Laurent Fabius has said he would return if he was needed. His Russian and Chinese counterparts, Sergei Lavrov and Wang Yi, are not expected to return to Lausanne. | The US secretary of state, John Kerry, the UK foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, and Steinmeier all signalled they would stay in Switzerland at least until Thursday morning. France’s Laurent Fabius has said he would return if he was needed. His Russian and Chinese counterparts, Sergei Lavrov and Wang Yi, are not expected to return to Lausanne. |