Nuclear talks in Iran be extended after world leaders struggled on Saturday to come closer to an agreement before the Nov. 24 deadline.
U.S. secretary of State John Kerry said there were still “big gaps” to overcome despite signs of progress.
“We hope we’re making careful progress,” Mr. Kerry said before a meeting with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier. “But we have big gaps. We still have some serious gaps, which we’re working to close,” Reuters reported Saturday.
A European source told the news agency that the likelihood of a deal being reached by Monday was “very small.”
“Our feeling is that they (Iran’s negotiators) don’t have a lot of flexibility,” the source told Reuters.
Diplomats said that a framework accord was still possible, but it could take months for leaders to agree on all of the aspects of implementation.
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However, diplomats did say that they would rather continue with the negotiations than back out and stir up more conflict.
Although significant progress has not been made at the talks in Vienna, sources told Reuters that Mr. Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif were discussing new ideas for improving negotiations between Tehran and the U.S., Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China.
Iran denies that it has been working to develop nuclear weapons, which Israel has decried as an imminent threat, and insists that the program is peaceful.
• Kellan Howell can be reached at khowell@washingtontimes.com.
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