Brussels, 17/03/2015 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 16 March, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini described the meeting about the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear programme as “useful”. The meeting had taken place earlier in the evening with Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, and his German, French and British counterparts - Frank Walter Steinmeier, Laurent Fabius and Philip Hammond respectively.
“This was a useful meeting and I am confident it will contribute to advancing the process in the coming days and weeks”, Mogherini said in a press release. “We discussed all the remaining shortcomings and the route to follow”, she told the media. In the view of one European source quoted by news agency Reuters, the negotiations were long but did not enable the differences of opinion to be reduced.
According to the press release from the European External Action Service (EEAS), Mogherini and the European ministers underlined their determination after this meeting, “to work towards reaching agreement with Iran on a solution that would address all concerns of the international community on the exclusively peaceful nature of the Iranian nuclear programme”.
Before the meeting, Mogherini had stated that the key players were entering “a crucial time, a crucial two weeks where negotiations will have to find the common ground for a good deal”. Also before the meeting, Hammond had said that there was “still got a long way to go” before an agreement. “There are areas where we've made progress, and areas where we have yet to make any progress”, he added.
The political directors of the E3+3 (Germany, France, United Kingdom and China, United States, Russia) will continue negotiations with Iran later this week, the EEAS stated. EU Political Director Helga Schmid joined the US-Iran bilateral talks on 17 March. The E3+3 political directors will meet in Lausanne on Wednesday 18 March. (Camille-Cerise Gessant)