Iran, P5+1 set to begin nuclear negotiations in Geneva

A new round of talks between Iran and six world powers over the Islamic Republic's nuclear program is set to be held in the Swiss city of Geneva.

The meeting, which is at the level of deputy foreign ministers, will start on Sunday at 11 a.m. local time (1000 GMT) at the United Nations office in Geneva.

The negotiations come a day after Iran's Deputy Foreign Ministers Seyyed Abbas Araqchi and Majid Takht-e-Ravanchi held talks with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov and Helga Schmid, the deputy of the EU foreign policy chief.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, meanwhile, has held four rounds of talks with US Secretary of State John Kerry over the past three days.

Zarif also held talks with the German and French foreign ministers, during which he urged his European counterparts to play a more active role in the final phases of the negotiations.

The top Iranian diplomat in a phone conversation with British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond discussed the latest developments related to the negotiations.

Zarif said on Saturday that an agreement on Iran’s nuclear energy program could only be signed when Western countries stop exerting pressure on Tehran.

“If Western countries intend to negotiate with Iran, they should make a political decision, which might be difficult for some, and cease applying pressure,” he said on Iranian television.

In November 2013, Iran and the P5+1 countries - the US, the UK, France, China, Russia and Germany - clinched an interim accord that took effect on January 20, 2014 and expired six months later. However, they agreed to extend their talks until November 24, 2014 as they remained divided on a number of key issues.

Iran and the six powers failed to reach a final agreement by the 2014 deadline despite making some progress.

The two sides agreed to extend their discussions for seven more months until July 1, 2015. They also agreed that the interim deal should remain in place during the negotiations.