Iran's Nuclear Negotiator: Deadline Extension, if Any, to Be Days, Not Months
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – A top Iranian negotiator in talks with world powers over Tehran's nuclear program said if the parties decide to extend the deadline for a final deal beyond June 30, negotiations will go on for a couple of more days, not months like in the past.
"We seek to reach a conclusion, and in this round, we do not intend to extend (the deadline) like the previous rounds for several months, but it is possible that a couple of days would be needed for the job to continue," Abbas Araqchi told al-Alam Arabic language news network in Vienna on Saturday.
His remarks came as the nuclear negotiations between Iran and the Group 5+1 (Russia, China, the US, Britain, France and Germany) resumed in Vienna on Saturday, with only four days remaining until a self-imposed deadline of June 30.
On April 2, Iran and the Group 5+1 (alternatively known as the P5+1 or E3+3) reached a framework nuclear agreement in Lausanne, Switzerland, that provides outlines of a final agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).
The parties have set end of June as the deadline for clinching the long-awaited deal that would end more than a decade of impasse over Tehran's peaceful nuclear program.