Iran nuclear talks to resume
Javad Zarif, the Iranian foreign minister, will fly to Vienna on Friday to resume talks on the country's nuclear programme with US, UK, France, Germany, Russia and China, Iranian news agencies reported on Thursday.
Zarif met with his European counterparts in Luxembourg on Monday and said he saw a good chance of reaching a final agreement by the initial deadline set on 30 June, or a few days later.
The US Secretary of State, John Kerry, will also attend the talks in Vienna, a month after it was made public that Wendy Sherman, the US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs and chief negotiator in the nuclear talks with Iran, will step down once talks conclude.
The news came after Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Tuesday ruled out freezing the country's sensitive nuclear work for a long time, adding that sanctions on the country should be lifted as soon as an agreement is reached.
"Halting Iran's research and development for a long time like 10 or 12 years is not acceptable," Khamenei said in a speech.
He also renewed his opposition to an inspection of Iran's military sites were out of question and that that issue was one of their “red lines”.
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