Iran Nuclear Talks May Be Extended If Final Push Falls Short
With the deadline for their nuclear talks just hours away, the U.S. and Iran took up the fall-back option of putting more time on the clock.
Secretary of State John Kerry and his Iranian counterpart, Mohammad Javad Zarif, began discussing late yesterday whether to extend the deadline, said a State Department official who asked not to be identified because the talks are confidential. The U.S. is also discussing a possible extension with the other world powers working to curb Irans nuclear program, including France, Russia, China, the U.K. and Germany, the official said.
That development recognizes that they may have run out of time to complete a comprehensive deal by tonights deadline given what both sides describe as significant gaps. An extension would present both practical and political problems, though both sides said its preferable to a breakdown in the diplomacy, which could then lead to military conflict over Irans nuclear activities.
Still, there were signs that diplomats had not given up on perhaps reaching a less ambitious agreement in a bid to resolve the 11-year standoff over suspicions that Iran secretly aspires to gain the capability to produce nuclear weapons.
Were still quite a long way apart and there are some very tough and complex issues to deal with, U.K. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond told the BBC after flying back to Vienna late yesterday for a working dinner with Kerry and his counterparts from France and Germany. At the moment, were focused on the last push, a big push tomorrow morning, to try and get this across the line.
Iranian men hold placards during a demonstration outside the Tehran Research Reactor in the capital Tehran on Nov. 23, 2014, to show their support to Iran's nuclear programme. Close
Iranian men hold placards during a demonstration outside the Tehran Research Reactor in... Read More
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Iranian men hold placards during a demonstration outside the Tehran Research Reactor in the capital Tehran on Nov. 23, 2014, to show their support to Iran's nuclear programme.
That effort may include the involvement of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who plans to call Iranian President Hassan Rouhani today, according to the Russian state-run Tass news agency. Russia remains at our side in the nuclear talks, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said in an interview on ARD German public television yesterday.
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Iran Nuclear Talks May Be Extended If Final Push Falls Short