An American Official: We Hope Rouhani's Contacts Indicate Iran's Readiness to Make Tough Decisions

An official from the U.S. State Department expressed hope on Friday, April 7, that Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's contacts with the leaders of the 1+5 countries indicate Iran's readiness to make tough decisions regarding a nuclear agreement. The official, who requested anonymity, stated in a statement about the ongoing negotiations between Iranian and U.S. officials in Lausanne, Switzerland: "The negotiations yesterday and today were difficult and serious. We are at a point where we may witness decision-making. We will test this issue in the coming days to see whether such decisions will indeed be made or not." The official added that other foreign ministers from the 1+5 group would arrive here based on their schedules and the ongoing negotiations in the coming days. He emphasized that the fact that President Rouhani has contacted the leaders of the 1+5 countries... we hope it is a sign of Iran's readiness to make tough decisions. On Thursday, April 6, Rouhani spoke by phone with the leaders of France, Britain, and Russia about the ongoing nuclear negotiations between Tehran and the six global powers and how to reach an agreement. The latest round of talks between Iran and the U.S. regarding a final agreement on Iran's nuclear program began on Wednesday in Lausanne, Switzerland. Following the negotiations, the Iranian foreign minister and his American counterpart began intensive and sensitive discussions on Thursday. According to Hannah Kavyani, a reporter from Radio Farda in Lausanne, on Thursday night, the deputies of the foreign ministers of the six major global powers and Iran also held discussions. According to Iranian media and Reuters, a senior Iranian nuclear diplomat present at the negotiations in Lausanne on Friday, April 7, stated that sanctions and research and development are two contentious issues between the two sides in the negotiations. Meanwhile, a reporter from Radio Farda in Lausanne reported that special arrangements have been made at one of the universities in Lausanne for Saturday and Sunday, and it seems that part of the events related to the nuclear negotiations may take place there. The Radio Farda reporter stated that the 'political framework', 'theoretical understanding of the generalities of a comprehensive agreement', or as one of the Iranian foreign ministry officials described it in Lausanne, 'joint understanding on common solutions regarding fundamental issues', whatever it is called, will only be about the generalities, and what Iran and the U.S. have been pursuing in recent days is likely at the level of a statement, and in recent days, Iranian and American officials have denied drafting a more comprehensive document with more details. Iran insists that any agreement should be done all at once and in one stage, and the lifting of sanctions, as Ayatollah Khamenei, the leader of the Islamic Republic, says, is 'part of the nuclear negotiation issue' with the 5+1 countries and should be without any gap from the agreement.