nuclear-news

Progress in Iran nuclear talks, but slight and slow

Some headway in Iran nuclear talks, SMH, Benedikt von Imhoff, Farshid Motahari and Albert Otti June 20, 2012, Iran and six world powers have finally begun making headway on Tehran’s nuclear program in talks in Moscow, but a wide divide remains between the two sides, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton says.

Working groups from both sides were scheduled to meet in Istanbul on
July 3, said Ashton, who headed the six delegations of the United
States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China.

“We expect Iran to decide whether it is willing to make diplomacy
work, to focus on reaching agreement on concrete confidence-building
steps, and to address the concerns of the international community,”
she said.

“The choice is Iran’s,” she added…..
Ashton described the talks as “detailed, tough and frank”.

However, Iran and the six powers apparently moved beyond restating
their respective positions.

“After five plenary sessions and several bilateral meetings, we have
begun to tackle the critical issues,” Ashton said. “However, it
remains clear that there are significant gaps between the substance of
the two positions.”

At the upcoming working-level meeting, both sides plan to get a better
understanding of each other’s positions.

The two-day talks in Moscow teetered on the brink of failure on
several occasions, as neither side was prepared to make
concessions…….An outright breakdown of negotiations could increase
the risk of an Israeli attack to destroy Iran’s nascent nuclear
program, which the Jewish state views as an existential threat.
http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/some-headway-in-iran-nuclear-talks-20120620-20mqg.html

June 20, 2012 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | general