The negotiations over Iran's nuclear program have been extended
through Monday, according to a senior State Department official.
This is the
third extension on the final round of talks to reach a deal curbing Iran's
nuclear program.
The State
Department said the extension would allow for additional time to negotiate, and
that the interim agreement known as the Joint Plan of Action would accordingly
be extended through Monday.
The Council of
Europe website noted that the freeze of E.U. sanctions specified in the plan
will therefore continue through July 13.
Earlier Friday,
Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif also indicated the talks were
likely to drag on.
"I doubt it
will happen today," Zarif told reporters in Vienna about reaching a deal.
But when asked if negotiators would all be there on Monday, Zarif yelled from a
balcony "I hope not."
Zarif made the comments after meeting with U.S. Secretary of
State John Kerry and the EU's foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini in
Vienna.
"We had a
constructive meeting this morning with Secretary Kerry and Mogherini,"
Zarif told reporters, saying "We are making progress."
Russian
president Vladimir Putin said Friday that all sanction from Iran need to be
lifted and said he hopes the talks reach a resolution soon.
"We know
what's going on there. We're in touch with our partners in Vienna. I hope the
document will be signed soon," Putin said at a press conference Friday in
Ufa, Russia.
Putin added,
"We're coming from the fact that all sanctions need to be lifted from
Iran. Sanctions are not the way to solve problems. In my view, the compromise
will be found soon."
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