VIENNA
There are still disagreements between the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany and Iran over the ongoing nuclear negotiations, the U.S. Secretary of State Kerry said on Sunday.
Kerry arrived in Vienna on Sunday and attended the meeting with Germany, France and England foreign ministries over Iran's nuclear arsenal. France's Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius underlined the potential differences of opinion over Iran's uranium enrichment program and the Arak heavy-water reactor, which international experts suspect has the ability to produce war-grade plutonium.
“We have some very significant gaps still, so we need to see if we can make some progress, and I really look forward to a very substantive and important set of meetings and dialogs,” said Kerry before the meeting.
Both sides were to hold a sixth round of talks on Iran’s controversial nuclear program beginning on July 3 with the final round of negotiations due to be held on July 20. Kerry stressed that the deadline and importance of reaching a permanent deal on the future of Iran’s nuclear program by the deadline.
"There are very significant gaps, that is very clear in these negotiations, and it is unlikely there will be a quick breakthrough today,” the British Foreign Secretary William Hague said.
Under a deal reached on November 24, 2013 in Geneva, western countries agreed to provide Iran with some sanctions relief in exchange for it agreeing to limit certain aspects of its nuclear activities. The negotiations may be extended for six months, if both sides do not reach a permanent agreement by the July 20 deadline.
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