Vlxi Tech

GENEVA

Nuclear diplomacy with Iran is moving into unprecedented realms today, with unexpected prospects of striking a first-step deal in Geneva prompting US Secretary of State John Kerry to change travel plans and join the talks, along with British, French, and German foreign ministers.

That sudden development – after nearly two years of fruitless talks to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for lifting sanctions – also prompted opponents as varied as Israel’s prime minister and Iran’s hard-line Friday prayer leader to raise loud voices of complaint.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told The Christian Science Monitor today that a joint text was being prepared, but that “a very difficult task” lay ahead.

“The only way that we can create confidence and sustain this process is to have balance in the first step, about each side trying to alleviate the most immediate concerns of the other side,” Mr. Zarif said in an interview as the day’s diplomacy began.

“We are still far from reaching an agreement, because we still have to nail them down and put them on paper, and in the best of circumstances we can finish it,” said Zarif.