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Iran Deal Falters as Negotiators Cite Little Progress

Negotiators weren’t able to reach agreement on a first-step accord to resolve a decade-old dispute over Iran’s nuclear program , reducing the likelihood that foreign ministers will arrive to strike a deal after two days of negotiations in Geneva. Talks between Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and Catherine Ashton , the European Union foreign policy chief representing world powers at the talks, broke up late yesterday after more than six hours of intense consultations, the EU said in a statement. The sides will reconvene today. “We have made no progress” toward resolving certain disagreements in the text, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters in Geneva. He said foreign ministers won’t come unless there’s “success in negotiations.” EU spokesman Michael Mann cast the talks in a more positive light, calling them “intense, substantial and detailed” […]

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World powers, Iran make new attempt to clinch nuclear deal

World powers aim to clinch a preliminary deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program in politically charged talks resuming in Geneva on Wednesday to end a long standoff and head off the risk of a wider Middle East war. The United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany came tantalizingly close to winning concessions from Iran on the scope of its nuclear work in return for some sanctions relief at negotiations in the Swiss city on November 7-9. Top policymakers from the sextet have since said that an interim accord on confidence-building steps to start defusing a decade of suspicion and hostility between the West and Iran could finally be within reach. But diplomats caution that differences remain and could still prevent an agreement during the talks Wednesday through Friday. "There is a good chance. There is a hope the Iranians realize it’s a good deal and […]

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France, Iran trade barbs, tempering hopes of nuclear deal

France and Iran traded tough words on Thursday before major powers began to negotiate the details of a preliminary accord to curb Tehran’s nuclear program with Paris warning the West had to remain firm and Tehran deploring a loss of trust. Each side appeared to be tempering anticipation of an imminent agreement after the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany came close to winning concessions from Tehran in the last round of negotiations two weeks ago. Policymakers from the six governments have said an interim accord on confidence-building steps could be within reach to defuse a decade-old stand-off and dispel the specter of a wider Middle East war over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear ambitions. But before negotiations began in earnest on Thursday, France and Iran stepped up the rhetoric. French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, who spoke out against a draft deal floated at the […]

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Iran Talks Enter Critical Phase as France Signals Unity

Diplomats seeking to reach an interim accord to ease a decade-long standoff over Iran’s nuclear program began a critical phase of talks today, an Iranian negotiator said. Iran ’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif met with European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton in Geneva, according to an EU statement. U.S. and Iranian negotiators were also set to have direct talks this morning, according to the U.S. delegation. “All will depend on the Ashton talks with Zarif,” Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters in the Swiss city. The six world powers Iran is negotiating with need a common stance at this “critical juncture,” he said. Envoys are trying to strike a first-step accord that would give negotiators a six-month window in which to win a broader agreement over Iran’s nuclear work. Israel and the U.S. have said they’re prepared to strike Iran, which controls the world’s No. […]

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Iran’s Comments on Israel Deemed ‘Unacceptable’ as Talks Open

Iran’s leader launched an anti-Western broadside as global powers resumed negotiations on curbing Tehran’s nuclear program, injecting fresh uncertainty into a diplomatic process viewed as crucial to Middle East stability. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s verbal attacks on Israel, the U.S. and its allies during a speech in Tehran Wednesday—he referred to the Jewish state as a “dirty rabid dog”—also tested the unity of the six international powers holding talks with Iran in Geneva this week. The French government quickly challenged Mr. Khamenei, calling his speech “unacceptable,” while the Obama administration offered a much milder response. This divergence mirrored the differing tactics Paris and Washington displayed two weeks ago during negotiations in the Swiss lakeside city. Then, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius publicly broke from the U.S. and other international powers and called the terms of the agreement being pursued with Tehran a “fool’s game.” French officials said Wednesday […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iran's Comments on Israel Deemed 'Unacceptable' as Talks Open

Iran’s leader launched an anti-Western broadside as global powers resumed negotiations on curbing Tehran’s nuclear program, injecting fresh uncertainty into a diplomatic process viewed as crucial to Middle East stability. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s verbal attacks on Israel, the U.S. and its allies during a speech in Tehran Wednesday—he referred to the Jewish state as a “dirty rabid dog”—also tested the unity of the six international powers holding talks with Iran in Geneva this week. The French government quickly challenged Mr. Khamenei, calling his speech “unacceptable,” while the Obama administration offered a much milder response. This divergence mirrored the differing tactics Paris and Washington displayed two weeks ago during negotiations in the Swiss lakeside city. Then, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius publicly broke from the U.S. and other international powers and called the terms of the agreement being pursued with Tehran a “fool’s game.” French officials said Wednesday […]

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Young Palestinian Refugees Join Jihadists Fighting in Syria

;Inside Lebanon’s largest Palestinian refugee camp, disaffected and unemployed youth are increasingly joining radical Islamist groups fighting in Syria, saying it gives their lives a sense of purpose. The growing hold of the jihadists is evident on the street at the camp’s entrance, lined with flags of al Qaeda-linked groups that operate in Lebanon or Syria. Homes on Tawareq Street are pockmarked by bullets and rocket-propelled grenades—scars of recent fighting between Islamist militants and the Lebanese army. The camp’s ties to jihadist groups fighting in Syria came into sharp relief on Tuesday. The head of the group that claimed responsibility for the bombing that killed 25 people outside Iran’s Embassy in Beirut lived in the camp for a time and the brigade operated openly there. The group linked the bombing to the conflict in Syria. The youth of Ain el-Hilweh, Lebanon’s most radicalized camp, have largely […]

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Hezbollah calls for calm after Iranian embassy bombing

A Hezbollah leader appealed for calm on Wednesday and an easing of sectarian tensions in Lebanon, a day after twin suicide bombings struck the Iranian embassy in Beirut. "The solution to this confrontation begins politically," the Shi’ite Muslim group’s deputy leader, Sheikh Naim Qassem, said on Lebanese radio, calling for unity. "Then there are security and military steps by the (Lebanese) authorities … in addition to attempts to calm the arena and reduce the transmission of sectarian poisons." He did not specify what security and military steps were needed. The remarks by Qassem, the most senior Hezbollah official to speak publicly about Tuesday’s bombings, suggested a restrained response from Hezbollah, which is funded by Iran and has sent fighters to Syria to support President Bashar al-Assad. Hezbollah’s military role in Syria has helped to inflame sectarian tension there and in Lebanon. Many Lebanese Sunnis back the […]

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World powers, Iran make new attempt to clinch nuclear deal

GENEVA (Reuters) – World powers aim to clinch a preliminary deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program in politically charged talks resuming in Geneva on Wednesday to end a long standoff and head off the risk of a wider Middle East war. The United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany came tantalizingly close to winning concessions from Iran on the scope of its nuclear work in return for some sanctions relief at negotiations in the Swiss city on November 7-9. Top policymakers from the sextet have since said that an interim accord on confidence-building steps to start defusing a decade of suspicion and hostility between the West and Iran could finally be within reach. But diplomats caution that differences remain and could still prevent an agreement during the talks Wednesday through Friday. "There is a good chance. There is a hope the Iranians realize it’s a good deal and […]

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A look at Iran nuclear sites from mine to reactor

AP Photo Nuclear talks resume Wednesday between Iran and world powers after the last round stalled over issues that include Iran’s planned heavy water reactor and the levels of uranium enrichment. Iran later agreed to provide U.N. nuclear inspectors with greater information and access, but it’s uncertain whether the concessions will be enough to push envoys in Geneva closer to a deal. Iran seeks a rollback in U.S.-led economic sanctions, while the West is pressing it to curb its uranium enrichment – the process to make nuclear fuel. In the past decade, Iran’s nuclear program has advanced on many fronts and more facilities are planned. —- RAISED AT TALKS – ARAK HEAVY WATER REACTOR: Such reactors can run on non-enriched uranium as fuel and uses a molecular variant of water as a coolant. Heavy water reactors also produce more plutonium byproducts than conventional reactors. Plutonium can be used in […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple