U.S., Iran talks ‘intense’ as nuclear deadline nears
— A month away from a deadline for a nuclear deal, U.S. and Iranian diplomats tried to narrow differences over how quickly to ease economic penalties against Tehran and how significantly the Iranians must open up military facilities to international inspections.
American officials described the session as “at times intense.”
The talks between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif lasted six hours, in what officials described as the most substantive negotiating round since world powers and Iran clinched a framework pact in April.
Last month’s agreement left big questions unanswered, which weeks of subsequent technical discussions have done little to resolve. It was unclear how much progress Kerry and Zarif made before the Iranian delegation began leaving for Tehran or if they fully rediscovered their momentum.
Asked about completing the full accord by June 30, Zarif said, “We will try.” His deputy,
Geneva Abbas Aragchi, said lower-level officials would meet again in Vienna this week.
U.S. officials provided hints of what must have been a difficult dialogue but said the encounter ultimately proved fruitful.
World powers believe that they have secured Iran’s acquiescence to a combination of nuclear restrictions that would fulfill their biggest goal: keeping Iran at least a year away from bomb-making capability for at least a decade. But they are less clear about how they will ensure Iran fully adheres to any agreement.
Various Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei have pledged to limit access to or even block monitors from sensitive military sites and nuclear scientists suspected of previous involvement in covert nuclear weapons efforts. The United States says such access must be guaranteed or there will be no final deal.
Other unresolved issues include the pace at which the U.S. and other countries will provide Iran relief from international sanctions — Tehran’s biggest demand — and how to “snap back” punitive measures into place if the Iranians are caught cheating.