TEHRAN
Deputy foreign ministers from Iran, the UK, France and Germany will gather in Istanbul on Jan. 29 to discuss Iran's nuclear program, according to an Iranian official.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, speaking to Iranian media, said that Saturday’s talks in the Swiss city of Zurich between representatives of the United States and the European Union had been “constructive.”
“We have started to discuss details of the complex issues, like suspending uranium enrichment and the complete removal of sanctions,” Araqchi said.
Araqchi said that Iran would be represented by himself and Majid Takht-e-Ravanchi during the meeting of deputy of foreign minister on the sidelines of the negotiations.
Negotiations in the Austrian capital, Vienna, in November 2014 were supposed to be the final round of talks between Iran and the world powers' group.
However, the deadline for a permanent settlement with Iran was extended until the end of June 2015 with the aim of "finishing the political agreement" by March, as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry termed it.
The five permanent members of the UN Security Council -- the U.S., U.K., China, France and Russia -- plus Germany, also known as the P5+1 group, believe that Iran is developing nuclear weapons and want Tehran to curb its nuclear program in return for the lifting of sanctions.
However, Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful civilian purposes.
Tehran agreed to limit certain aspects of its controversial nuclear program in exchange for some relief in international sanctions under a deal reached in November, 2013 in Geneva.
