Iran and US Foreign Ministers Meet in Paris

Mohammad Javad Zarif and John Kerry, the foreign ministers of Iran and the United States, met in Paris on Friday, January 26, as part of their discussions this week regarding Iran's nuclear dispute. According to a report by AFP citing a US official, the meeting lasted about an hour. The report also states that the Iranian foreign minister will have a bilateral meeting with his French counterpart, Laurent Fabius. Zarif mentioned on Friday morning in Geneva before departing for Paris that he would discuss Iran's nuclear file with the French foreign minister, addressing both regional issues and religious extremism and Islamophobia. On Wednesday, the Iranian foreign minister held three rounds of negotiations with his American counterpart, John Kerry, which lasted over six hours in total, followed by discussions at the level of deputy foreign ministers from both countries, which are still ongoing. Hannah Kavyani, a correspondent for Radio Farda in Geneva, reports that the Iranian and American delegations negotiated from around 11 AM to 2 PM on Friday, and their next round of negotiations was ongoing at 5 PM at the time of this report. The reporter also notes that during the meeting between Zarif and Kerry in Paris, negotiations between the Iranian and American delegations in Geneva were paused, and the Iranian delegation had even left the hotel where the talks were taking place. This bilateral meeting occurs ahead of Iran's nuclear negotiations with the P5+1 countries, which include the UK, US, France, Russia, China, and Germany, scheduled for Sunday, January 28, in Geneva. The reporter in Geneva mentions that unofficial sources indicate that this round of negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 may last more than one day.