Iran state media: Agreement reached on executing nuclear deal

GlobalPost

Iranian state-run media reports western powers and Iran will begin implementing a landmark nuclear deal in late January, after the breakthrough agreement was struck in Geneva on November 24.

"Based on the conclusions the talks held with ...expert delegations, the implementation of the Geneva accord will start in the third ten-day of January," Iran's state-run Press TV reported nuclear negotiator, Hamid Baeidinejad, as saying on Tuesday.

"The two sides managed to reach an understanding on the implementation of the agreement and now, their views and interpretations are the same," he said.

However, Michael Mann, EU spokesman for foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, declined to tell Reuters on Tuesday if a deal on the implementation timetable had been reached.

Instead, he said state representatives would report to their respective nations in an effort to continue to "finalize a common understanding of implementation."

Mann's comments appear to be in line with what a lead Iranian negotiator has reported. 

Abbas Araqchi said from Geneva that "the two sides have made good progress on different issues," according to the official news agency IRNA.

They are "going to submit their conclusions to the vice-ministers and political heads because there are still questions to be resolved on the political level," he added. 

So far no other nations involved in the negotiations have confirmed or denied Press TV's report, which comes after some 23 hours of talks between Iranian nuclear experts and world powers.  

The November accord requires the US to provide some sanction relief in exchange for Iran halting some of its nuclear activities for six months, while the two nations continue to try and find a more complete and longterm deal on Iran's controversial nuclear program.

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