Vienna: The lifting of a conventional arms embargo on Iran is a “major problem” in talks between Tehran and world powers towards a nuclear deal, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Interfax on Tuesday.
“I can assure you that there remains one major problem that’s related to sanctions: this is the problem of an arms embargo,” Lavrov said after negotiations were effectively extended until Friday.
This view was echoed by a spokesman for the Iranian delegation during the talks in Vienna between Iran and the P5+1 powers — the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany.
“The arms embargo is one of the major unresolved issues,” the spokesman said.
Tehran wants international restrictions on arms deliveries to Iran to be lifted as part of a deal with world powers curbing its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.
But a US fact sheet issued after Iran and the six powers agreed a framework nuclear deal in April indicated that these restrictions would remain in place.
Although all UN Security Council resolutions would be lifted, they would be replaced by one new one extending “important restrictions on conventional arms and ballistic missiles,” the fact sheet said.
Western officials are uneasy about allowing Iran to buy conventional weapons when it is accused by the West of fomenting unrest in the Middle East, even though it is also fighting Daesh militants, a common enemy for Washington and Tehran.
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, who was expected to leave the talks and return on Wednesday night, said the main sticking points for his country were research and development, sanctions, and an unsolved IAEA investigation.
An Iranian diplomat said that there were still differences to overcome in nuclear talks with six world powers, the ISNA agency reported on Tuesday.
“Still there are three issues to be resolved, which are sanctions, UN resolutions and nuclear work,” the unnamed diplomat told said.
Russia said talks to conclude a deal will continue at the level of political directors, according to Bloomberg.
It’s not important to complete negotiations by “artificial deadlines,” Lavrov told reporters. “We are focused on reaching a good agreement.”
Foreign ministers can return to the talks to add weight to proceedings if needed, and about ten issues are still to be resolved amid “significant progress,” Lavrov said. Disagreements remain over a so-called “snapback” mechanism to restore sanctions automatically if the Islamic republic fails to comply with the agreement.
— with inputs from AFP
