Iranian and European negotiators met in secrecy here on Friday to seek agreement over Iran's nuclear program, and Iranian leaders increased pressure for a quick deal to permit them to resume enriching uranium for nuclear fuel.
Despite the tough talk from figures in Tehran, including former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, officials from both sides said the talks on Friday night were unlikely to reach any kind of breakthrough.
Negotiations
The US and Europe have pushed Iran to renounce all uranium enrichment as a guarantee against a clandestine program to make weapons-grade uranium.
Under international pressure, Iran has suspended its uranium enrichment program and has been negotiating with Britain, France and Germany over the future of the program. Iran has insisted that its nuclear program is exclusively for electric power generation.
Sanctions possible
The US has warned that if Iran ends the talks and resumes enrichment, Washington will seek action from the UN Security Council, possibly leading to economic sanctions.
The Europeans have taken a less confrontational tack, seeking to persuade Iran to abandon its nuclear program in return for economic concessions.
On the Iranian side, however, the issue has been wrapped up in the country's looming presidential elections on June 17, and European diplomats say they fear that recent Iranian statements may reflect political posturing.
US opposition
Iran is seeking European assent to a small experimental enrichment program, but both the Europeans and the US oppose the idea.
In Tehran on Friday, Rafsanjani said Iran was "determined to have all branches of nuclear technology, including uranium enrichment, and we will have it at any cost," according to reports.
Rafsanjani's words echoed remarks on Thursday by Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi, who said, "If talks with European Union are not successful tomorrow, negotiations will collapse, and we will have no choice but to restart the uranium enrichment program."
Low expectations
But the senior officials from both sides who are conducting the talks seemed anxious to play down any high expectations from the London encounter.
The head of the Iranian negotiators, Muhammad Javad Zarif, citing remarks by other Iranian officials, said: "We engage in these talks in order to make a deal, and not to break one. We are hoping for tangible progress on reaching an agreement."
A humanoid robot that won a half-marathon race for robots in Beijing on Sunday ran faster than the human world record in a show of China’s technological leaps. The winner from Honor, a Chinese smartphone maker, completed the 21km race in 50 minutes and 26 seconds, said a WeChat post by the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, also known as Beijing E-Town, where the race began. That was faster than the human world record holder, Ugandan Jacob Kiplimo, who finished the same distance in about 57 minutes in March at the Lisbon road race. The performance by the robot marked a significant step forward
Four contenders are squaring up to succeed Antonio Guterres as secretary-general of the UN, which faces unprecedented global instability, wars and its own crushing budget crisis. Chile’s Michelle Bachelet, Argentina’s Rafael Grossi, Costa Rica’s Rebeca Grynspan and Senegal’s Macky Sall are each to face grillings by 193 member states and non-governmental organizations for three hours today and tomorrow. It is only the second time the UN has held a public question-and-answer, a format created in 2016 to boost transparency. Ultimately the five permanent members of the UN’s top body, the Security Council, hold the power, wielding vetoes over who leads the
South Korea’s air force yesterday apologized for a 2021 midair collision involving two fighter jets, a day after auditors said the pilots were taking selfies and filming during the flight and held them responsible for the accident. “We sincerely apologize to the public for the concern caused by the accident that occurred in 2021,” an air force spokesman told a news conference, adding that one of the pilots involved had been suspended from flying duties, received severe disciplinary action and has since left the military. The apology followed a report released on Wednesday by the South Korean Board of Audit and Inspection,
An earthquake registering a preliminary magnitude of 7.7 off northern Japan on Monday prompted a short-lived tsunami alert and the advisory of a higher risk of a possible mega-quake for coastal areas there. The Cabinet Office and the Japan Meteorological Agency said there was a 1% chance for a mega-quake, compared to a 0.1% chance during normal times, in the next week or so following the powerful quake near the Chishima and Japan trenches. Officials said the advisory was not a quake prediction but urged residents in 182 towns along the northeastern coasts to raise their preparedness while continuing their daily lives. Prime
RSS