GENEVA
Iran and the P5+1 group made "some progress" during nuclear talks since last Friday but there is a "long way" to reach a final agreement, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said Monday following a two-day talk with his U.S. counterpart John Kerry in Geneva.
Iranian media cited Zarif as saying that they conducted "serious, useful and constructive" negotiations, but there was still a "long way" to reach a final agreement.
Iran and the P5+1 group will resume talks next Monday in an effort to meet a March 31 deadline for a political framework agreement after months-long negotiations.
Both sides have already missed two deadlines for a permanent deal on Iran's nuclear program in negotiations that have been ongoing since 2003.
The deadline for a permanent settlement was extended until the end of June 2015.
Both sides threatened to walk away from the nuclear talks with Kerry saying that the U.S. may pull out of talks while Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi was quoted as saying, "We continue the talks strongly, but whenever we feel that the negotiations do not secure our national interests, we will certainly walk away."
The five permanent members of the UN Security Council -- the U.S., UK, China, France and Russia plus Germany -- believe that Iran is developing nuclear weapons and want Tehran to curb its nuclear program in return for the lifting of sanctions.
Iran, however, says its nuclear program is for peaceful civilian purposes.
The deal sought by the six-nation group would have Iran accept limits on its uranium enrichment capacity and allow International Atomic Energy Agency inspections without interference of any kind. This would ensure that Iran does not begin developing nuclear weapons.
In return, Iran would see a lifting of the international trade and financial sanctions that have held back its economic growth.
