Iran sets date for talks with world powers

Tehran:  Long-stalled talks between Iran and world powers are to be revived on April 13 at a place yet to be agreed, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi announced yesterday.

"The date has been set, but the negotiations for the venue are still ongoing," Salehi told AFP.

"Turkey has announced its readiness to host the talks, and my personal priority is Istanbul," he added.

The talks carry hopes of defusing a tense international showdown over Iran's nuclear activities that has sent oil prices soaring.

Israel has brandished the threat of possible military action against Iran's nuclear sites, while the US has put its energies into sanctions and diplomacy but has not ruled out the military option. Salehi made his announcement as he welcomed Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Tehran for a two-day visit focusing on Iran's nuclear programme and bilateral ties.

On Erdogan's arrival, Salehi told the official Islamic Republic News Agency that the next round of the talks between Iran and the so-called P5+1 group comprising the US, Russia, France, Britain, China and Germany would take place on April 13. Speaking to AFP, Salehi said that a "suggestion" from the P5+1 for a venue had been received and was being studied, and that the location "will be announced soon".

He did not say what venue had been proposed by the world powers.

The last round, held in Istanbul in 2011, ended in failure. The round before that, in 2010, was in Geneva. In Brussels, a European diplomat confirmed to AFP that the next round of negotiations would start on April 13 but that a location had not yet been agreed.

Turkey's ambassador to Tehran was quoted by Iran's Press TV as saying: "Turkey stands ready to host the talks between Iran and the P5+1 group, but everything depends on an agreement between Iran and the P5+1."

Erdogan arrived in Tehran from South Korea, where he had attended a nuclear security summit with other world leaders, including US President Barack Obama.