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Iran nuclear talks intense and tough says official
The first day of nuclear talks between Iran and the six world powers in Moscow was ‘intense and tough’, as wide gaps remain between Tehran’s aspirations and the international community’s demands for them to curb their nuclear activity.
During yesterday’s talks, Iranian negotiators dissected a package of enticements that the six world powers – the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany – presented last month in Baghdad. The package included the supply of civilian aircraft parts and fuel for an Iranian nuclear reactor, with the promise of more sanctions relief in return for specific Iranian actions over time. “We had an intense and tough exchange of views,” said European Union foreign policy head Catherine Ashton’s spokesman Michael Mann. “They responded to our package of proposals from Baghdad, but in doing so, brought up lots of questions and well-known positions, including past grievances,” said Mann. “We are not there. We have to have further discussions tomorrow, based upon overnight reflections.”
On the first day of talks Iran signalled that it may be willing to stop enriching uranium to 20 per cent purity, which is considered a technical step short of bomb-grade, but was seeking a firm political message in return: an acknowledgment from the international community that it has the right to enrich uranium – a condition that the US and EU are unlikely to accept. Iran was also eager for a rollback of tough sanctions by the European Union and the United States scheduled to take effect in the coming weeks, which will further isolate Tehran from world oil and banking markets. However, Iran received no such assurances on Monday from the six world powers.
Speaking on Iran’s behalf, the deputy negotiator Ali Bagheri described the talks as “serious and constructive”, and said Iran expected a response to its own demands in talks taking place today.
The Moscow talks follow two rounds of negotiations since diplomacy resumed in April after a 15-month hiatus during which the West introduced new sanctions and Iran continued its nuclear push.