Hours after the start of negotiations between the foreign ministers of Iran and the United States in Switzerland as part of the nuclear talks, news agencies quoted a European negotiator describing the nuclear agreement between the Islamic Republic and the 5+1 group as 'out of reach and unlikely.' On Thursday, March 18, the French news agency quoted this unnamed European diplomat as saying that the two negotiating parties are 'still very far from an agreement.' He deemed reaching a framework agreement in the coming days as unlikely, stating, 'I really don't think we will reach a framework agreement by Friday night.' Reuters, citing the same European negotiator, reported: 'It is not true that the Iranians say that 90 percent of the agreement has been reached.' This diplomat likely referred to comments made by Ali Akbar Salehi, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, who stated on Wednesday that Iran and the U.S. had reached agreements on 90 percent of technical issues in their bilateral negotiations regarding Iran's nuclear program. According to a report on March 17 by ISNA, Salehi, who is currently in Lausanne, Switzerland for the nuclear talks, said, 'We have reached agreements on 90 percent of technical issues in discussions with Ernest Moniz, the U.S. Secretary of Energy.' He added, 'On most issues, we have reached bilateral agreements, but we still have a significant disagreement on one important issue, which we will try to resolve in today's evening meeting between the foreign ministers of the two countries.' Meanwhile, the Islamic Republic News Agency quoted Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's foreign minister, on Thursday as saying, 'We are getting to a place' and 'we are progressing very well.' However, Zarif also noted that 'we are still far from saying we have reached a common understanding, and we have a lot of work ahead of us.' The Iranian foreign minister further stated, 'We will stay in Lausanne as long as necessary.' ISNA reported early Thursday, citing sources close to the negotiations, that the outcome would be determined by the end of Thursday. However, the same news agency also reported from other sources the possibility of extending the negotiations until Friday and even until the end of Sunday. Iran and the 5+1 group aim to reach a final agreement by June. Previously, it was expected that the two sides would reach a general (political) agreement by March 24 of this year.
European Negotiator: We Are Still Far from a Nuclear Agreement with Iran
Negotiations between Iran and the U.S. regarding the nuclear agreement are ongoing, but a European negotiator has stated that a deal is unlikely in the near future. Iranian officials claim significant progress has been made, but discrepancies remain. The outcome of these talks is crucial for international relations and nuclear non-proliferation efforts.
👥 Key Players
📰 What Happened
Negotiations between Iran and the U.S. regarding a nuclear agreement are ongoing, but a European negotiator has indicated that a deal is unlikely soon. While Iranian officials claim significant progress has been made, key disagreements remain.
- The European negotiator stated that the two sides are 'still very far from an agreement.'
- Iran's officials claim to have reached agreements on 90% of technical issues, but significant disagreements persist.
💡 Why It Matters
📚 Background
The negotiations are part of efforts to limit Iran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief, following the U.S. withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in 2018.
🏷️ Entities Mentioned
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