Zarif Says No Need for All P5+1 FMs' Presence at Nuclear Talks So Far

Iranian Foreign Minister says that at the current stage of the nuclear negotiations he sees no reason for the participation of all the foreign ministers from P5+1 countries.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Thursday that at the current stage of the Iranian nuclear negotiations he sees no reason for the participation of all the foreign ministers from P5+1 countries, the Iranian news outlet Nuclear Talks said.

#Zarif: We talked about #NuclearTalks w/ all P5+1 FMs. For what we are doing here, I think no need for presence of all P5+1 FMs. #IranTalks

— Nuclear Talks (@NuclearTalks) March 19, 2015

A new round of Iranian nuclear talks kicked off last Sunday in Lausanne, in Switzerland. On Thursday, Iran's Zarif had a bilateral meeting with his US counterpart John Kerry.

The West has long accused Iran of creating nuclear weaponry under the guise of a civilian program – a claim repeatedly denied by Tehran.

Since November, 2013 Iran and the P5+1 group of international mediators comprising Russia, the United States, China, the United Kingdom, France and Germany have been negotiating a long-term deal aimed at ensuring the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear activities. The negotiators set March 24 as a deadline for a political framework deal, with a final comprehensive agreement to follow in July.

Earlier on Thursday, Iran's senior nuclear negotiator Hamid Baeidinejad said that Iran views March 24 as a flexible deadline but remains committed to reaching a deal in late June.