A senior Russian diplomat says a “favorable” groundwork has been laid for a final agreement between Iran and the P5+1 group over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear energy program.
Head of the Russian Federation Council’s International Affairs Committee Mikhail Margelov hailed Iran’s “persistent” efforts in persuading the international community that Tehran is not after nuclear weapons, Russia’s Interfax news agency reported on Monday.
“Favorable conditions have been created for a comprehensive agreement to be drafted, which would lift the sanctions against Iran completely,” said the Russian official.
Margelov further emphasized a fatwa (religious decree) by Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei against nuclear weapons and said the decree bans the “production of nuclear weapons in Iran, calling it a sin.”
“All this opens a completely new perspective on the agenda of the next round of talks between Iran and the six negotiators (Russia, China, France, Britain, the U.S. and Germany),” Margelov added.
Iran and the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council plus Germany inked an interim deal on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear energy program in Geneva, Switzerland, on November 24, 2013. The Geneva deal took effect on January 20.
Tehran and its negotiating sides aim to continue their talks to hammer out a long-term deal aimed at fully resolving the decade-old dispute over Iran’s nuclear energy program.
Iran and the six countries wrapped up their latest round of nuclear negotiations in Vienna on February 20. The two sides are slated to meet again in Vienna, Austria, on March 17 to continue their discussions.
