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![Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and the negotiating team were seen as heroes by many in Iran after last year's nuclear talks breakthrough [Xinhua]](http://thebricspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/220430929_8-e1385532981163.jpg)
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and the negotiating team were seen as heroes by many in Iran after last year’s nuclear talks breakthrough [Xinhua]
A preliminary agreement agreed in Lausanne, Switzerland last April focused on curbing Iran’s nuclear program – including uranium enrichment – in return for a lifting of crippling economic sanctions, which diminished Tehran’s ability to pump and export oil and gas.
But a member of the Russian delegation at the talks told reporters Friday that the talks had slowed down considerably and appear to have stalled.
The unidentified Russian diplomat told the ITAR-RUSS press agency that there was a fear that the negotiations would not be completed before the June 30 deadline, and anticipated that the deadline may yet again be pushed back.
US State Department spokesperson Jeff Rathke has previously said that the deadline would not be extended.
Both US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif acknowledged that key issues remain to be resolved but had expressed optimism that these could be bridged before the June 30 deadline.
One of these issues is more intrusive access of nuclear (IAEA) inspectors to Iran’s plants and sites, including possible military zones.
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius told reporters on Thursday that the issue of inspections had not yet been resolved.
But the greatest point of contention – which has already produced a series of contradictory statements in Tehran and Washington – is how quickly sanctions will be removed.
Zarif has previously said that Tehran considers “the US government responsible for fulfilling its international commitments under international laws”.
The BRICS Post with inputs from Agencies
