Iran, IAEA Hold Technical Talks in Tehran

Representatives from Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) hold technical talks in the Iranian capital of Tehran.

Iran’s envoy to the agency Reza Najafi and IAEA Deputy Director General and head of the Department of Safeguards, TeroVarjoranta, held technical discussions on Monday.

The day-long talks between Iran and the UN nuclear agency will focus on resolving the two issues of explosives testing and neutron calculations.

The IAEA claims that Iran has not yet addressed specific issues such as questions on alleged research activities into explosives testing and neutron calculations.

Iran has rejected the accusations as baseless and repeatedly emphasized its readiness for full cooperation with the IAEA as part of its transparency efforts to solve the country’s nuclear issue.

Iran’s envoy to the IAEA said on Wednesday the agency’s recent report on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program verifies Tehran’s “full transparency” in its nuclear program.

Najafi added that the report shows the country’s goodwill and strong determination to reach further agreements with the UN nuclear agency.

On March 2, the IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano once again verified lack of any diversion toward non-peaceful purposes in Iran’s declared nuclear material.“Concerning safeguards implementation in Iran, the agency continues to verify the non-diversion of nuclear material declared by Iran under its Safeguards Agreement,” Amano said in an address to the agency’s Board of Governors in the Austrian capital city of Vienna.

Iran says it has granted the IAEA access to sites which the agency claims need to be investigated in order to clarify the outstanding issues.

Lifting all sanctions only way to reach nuclear deal, says Shamkhani

On the other hand,  a senior Iranian official has once again reiterated that the lifting of all sanctions would be the only way to reach a final agreement with the P5+1 countries over Tehran’s nuclear program.

“The only way to achieve a nuclear agreement is based on [respecting] mutual interests and lifting all sanctions,” Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani said on Monday.

He added that Iran still believes that sanctions imposed against the country over its nuclear program are cruel, illegal and ineffective.

“Iran has given an opportunity to the other negotiating side to end a fabricated crisis with logic and within the framework of international law,” Shamkhani pointed out.

Iran and the P5+1 countries – Britain, France, China, the United States and Russia plus Germany – are seeking to seal a comprehensive nuclear deal by July 1. The two sides have already missed two self-imposed deadlines for inking a final agreement since they signed an interim one in the Swiss city of Geneva in November 2013.

Representatives of Iran and the P5+1 group of countries wrapped up the latest round of nuclear negotiations in the city of Montreux, Switzerland, on March 6.

Iran and the United States are reportedly scheduled to resume a new round of talks on Tehran’s nuclear program in the Swiss city of Lausanne on March 15 to bridge their differences ahead of the July 1 deadline.

PRESS T.V

R.S