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| Negotiators Plan to Extend Iran Nuclear Talks by 7 Months | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| VIENNA — Hours away from a Monday deadline for completing a new accord to curb Iran’s nuclear program, negotiators planned to extend the talks for another seven months, a Western diplomat said. | |
| An agreement on the main elements of the accord is to be drafted by March 1, the diplomat said. The final details are to be completed by July. | |
| The negotiations are to resume next month. The location for the December talks has yet to be announced, but over the past month, Secretary of State John Kerry has met with his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, in Muscat, Oman, and in Vienna. | |
| American officials and their negotiating partners have yet to explain if any substantial progress was made in the latest round of talks here and what gaps remain. President Obama said in a television interview on Sunday that there were still “significant” differences between the two sides. | American officials and their negotiating partners have yet to explain if any substantial progress was made in the latest round of talks here and what gaps remain. President Obama said in a television interview on Sunday that there were still “significant” differences between the two sides. |
| It was also unclear how long the talks would be prolonged, as negotiators try to resolve crucial issues, including how much nuclear fuel Iran could produce, how long the accord would last and how intrusive inspections would be. | It was also unclear how long the talks would be prolonged, as negotiators try to resolve crucial issues, including how much nuclear fuel Iran could produce, how long the accord would last and how intrusive inspections would be. |
| “Given progress made this weekend, talks headed to likely extension with experts and negotiating teams reconvening in December at a yet to be determined location,” said a Western diplomat, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the discussions related to internal planning. | “Given progress made this weekend, talks headed to likely extension with experts and negotiating teams reconvening in December at a yet to be determined location,” said a Western diplomat, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the discussions related to internal planning. |
| The British foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, signaled last week that an extension was a likely option. But Mr. Kerry has insisted as recently as Thursday that the goal of the current round was to hammer out “the outline” of an agreement and that an extension was not under discussion. | The British foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, signaled last week that an extension was a likely option. But Mr. Kerry has insisted as recently as Thursday that the goal of the current round was to hammer out “the outline” of an agreement and that an extension was not under discussion. |
| With the deadline just a day away, however, Mr. Kerry raised idea of extending the talks in a meeting on Sunday night with Mr. Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister. The Iranian news media had already reported that the Iranian side would be amenable to some sort of extension. | With the deadline just a day away, however, Mr. Kerry raised idea of extending the talks in a meeting on Sunday night with Mr. Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister. The Iranian news media had already reported that the Iranian side would be amenable to some sort of extension. |
| The extension had not even been announced when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel celebrated it as the least-bad outcome. “No deal is better than a bad deal,” he said to the BBC, hours after speaking with Mr. Kerry by phone. “The right deal that is needed is to dismantle Iran’s capacity to make atomic bombs and only then dismantle the sanctions. Since that’s not in the offing, this result is better, a lot better.” |