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Iran’s foreign minister outlines disputes between Iran, Sextet

TEHRAN, November 29. /TASS/. Iran’s foreign minister outlined major outstanding disputes between Tehran and the P5+1 (five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany). IRNA says the minister reported to the parliament members results of the latest round of talks in Geneva on the Iranian nuclear dossier.

“The major disputes at the negotiations were related to terms and conditions for lifting the sanctions as well as the timing for Iran’s access to financial markets,” an MP told the news agency. “Zarif said about less tension concerning the nuclear facility in Arak. But at the same time, still remains the issue of the number of centrifuges for enrichment of uranium.”

A week earlier, on Tuesday, Iran’s foreign minister left Vienna after seven days of intensive talks with the six international mediators, where the parties were expected to reach an overwhelming agreement on the Iranian nuclear programme before November 24. But participants in the meeting could not agree not only on the final, but even on the framework political document. The parties only agreed on terms and conditions for extending the negotiations process.

They agreed within next four months the participants in the negotiations will focus on achieving a political or a general agreement, which, Zarif told the parliament, “may be done even within several days.” In that case, they could work on details of the agreement, related to technical and legal aspects.

At the same time, the Iranian foreign minister said, the parties extracted term of the interim agreement, under which Tehran will receive every month $700 million from partially unfrozen Iranian assets in foreign banks.

P5+1 is the five permanent members of the UN Security Council - the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom and France - plus Germany.

Iran says it needs nuclear power to generate electricity, but Western powers led by the United States claim Iran’s eventual aim is to create nuclear weapons.

A plan of joint actions designed for a year that underlay the current negotiating process was agreed by Iran and the six international negotiators in Geneva on November 24, 2013. It in particular envisioned that Iran will get rid of half of accumulated uranium enriched to 20% and will dilute the second half to the 5-percent mark.

Besides, Tehran was supposed to stop enrichment of uranium to more than 5%, and halt work on enrichment enterprises in Natanz, Fordow and at the heavy-water reactor site in Arak.

In turn, the P5+1 members pledged not to impose new restrictions on export of Iranian oil, new sanctions and lift restrictions on exports of oil products and precious metals, as well as unfreeze part of Tehran’s foreign assets.

Implementation of agreements designed for six months started January 20, and the sides decided to draft a final agreement over the period. Over the six months, Iran complied with its commitments in full and had the sanctions regime against it eased.

But the sides failed to agree the document by July 20, and decided to shift the end date to November 24 - the provisional action plan's deadline. Iran committed itself to convert all 20-percent enriched uranium left to nuclear fuel.

On its part, the six international negotiators agreed to continue their policy not to use previously agreed sanctions against Iran and grant Tehran access to $2.8 billion out of its assets arrested abroad. The funds were to be provided in several tranches.