Tense negotiations on reaching a deal with Iran over its nuclear programme entered a crucial phase on Saturday as France's top diplomat flew in to join talks in Lausanne.
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, seen as the most hawkish representative of the so-called P5+1 group of Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States overseeing the talks, was the first European minister to arrive in the Swiss city, joining US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif.
"I am coming here with the desire to move towards a robust agreement," Fabius told reporters in Lausanne. "We have made progress on certain issues but not enough on others."
The stakes could not be higher. Global powers are chasing a deal to rein in Iran's nuclear ambitionswhich have poisoned international relations for 12 years, and seal 18 months of closed-door, painstaking talks which have criss-crossed the globe and involved hundreds of experts.
The negotiating parties have set themselves a deadline of March 31 to agree a “framework” deal with Iran over its nuclear programme, which Tehran insists is only for civilian energy needs but the West fears could lead to the development of nuclear weapons.
They will then have until June 30 to reach a final agreement, which will aim to seal off Iran's pathways to a nuclear weapon in exchange for the easing of a labyrinth of international sanctions which have excluded the Islamic republic from lucrative oil markets and crippled its economy.
‘Complicated and difficult’
Kerry and Zarif have met multiple times since the dragging talks resumed in earnest in 2013. But the road to a deal has been strewn with hurdles, and even with a deadline just days away, Iran and the US Friday were still insisting the other side had to make concessions.
"We have tough negotiations and we have differences and we have to solve them," Zarif told reporters.
The two sides remained at odds over an agreement, he said, adding: "No, we are not (close). But we are making progress."
"The work is very complicated and difficult. The other side needs to choose between pressure and a political accord," Zarif said.
A US State Department official, asking not to be named, agreed the negotiations "have been tough and very serious".
"We're at that point in the negotiations where we really need to see decisions being made," the official said.
World powers hope to scale back Iran's nuclear capacity by cutting its number of sophisticated centrifuges for spinning enriched uranium, which can be used to make a bomb, and reconfiguring some of its facilities.
Fabius will lead the charge to Lausanne, with Kerry agreeing with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov that a joint P5+1 ministerial meeting could be possible on Sunday.
After holding direct talks with Fabius Kerry will then "have a working lunch" with both the French diplomat and German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier later in the day, a US State Department official said.
"We expect the other P5+1 ministers to arrive this weekend as their schedules allow," the official added.
Fabius, Obama and Merkel up pressure on Iran
Fabius, who has pushed for tougher demands on Iran in exchange for lifting sanctions, told FRANCE 24 on Friday that there was “still some way to go” in the talks in Lausanne.
"Iran said it would not pursue nuclear arms technology, but we must make sure that this is a lasting commitment, one that can be verified with certainty," he said.
In Washington, President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel also upped the pressure on Iran.
"Iran must make the decisions necessary to resolve several remaining issues," a statement said after the two leaders spoke by telephone.
Iran would have to make "painful choices," a Western diplomat echoed, saying its development of faster nuclear machinery, the possible military dimensions of its programme, and the lifting of sanctions were among the unresolved issues.
Iranian President Hassan Rohani called Thursday for the "unjust" sanctions choking the country's economy to be lifted, with global powers insisting sanctions will only be suspended, not lifted, as a safeguard against any violations.
As to how the eventual deal might be presented, British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond told reporters in Washington it would be a political outline of an agreement to be finalised over the coming months.
"Conceptually what's envisaged is a statement of broad understanding, the political parameters," he said. Other diplomats said there may just be some kind of declaration and the specific details might not be made public.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, REUTERS)
No comments:
Post a Comment