BICOM

Following a meeting yesterday between European Union foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton and Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, talks are expected to resume on implementing the interim deal agreed in Geneva last month between the international community and Tehran.

Under the terms of the interim agreement concluded between the P5+1 powers (US, UK, France, Russia, China and Germany) and Iran in Geneva last month, Iran is expected to pause aspects of its nuclear programme during the coming six months, in return for a relaxation of some sanctions. Talks on implementing the deal took place last week, but were overshadowed after Tehran took umbrage at a US decision to blacklist a number of Iranian companies for breaching existing sanctions.

Ashton, who heads the P5+1 forum met yesterday with Araqchi in Brussels and AFP reports that Ashton gave assurances that world powers remain committed to implementing the Geneva deal. According to Belgian newspaper Soir, Araqchi said “On the basis of these explanations, we have decided to resume technical negotiations in Vienna.” He added that talks would resume “in a question of days.”

Wall Street Journal says US Secretary of State John Kerry spoke on Monday with Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammed Zarif in a further attempt to kick-start talks. The same article quotes Foreign Secretary William Hague who commented that negotiations between the P5+1 and Iran in the coming weeks would be “difficult.” This appeared to be underscored by Zarif’s interview in the Washington Post this week in which he indicated that Iran has no intention of halting work at the key Arak and Fordow plants.

Meanwhile, the Jerusalem Post reports that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei used social media to compare Zionists to Nazis. On his Facebook page on Monday, Khamenei said “Fighting the #Zionists and their supporters is a great spiritual and divine duty… the Zionists are just like the #Nazis and display the same #racist behaviours.”