Kerry And Zarif To Hold Talks In Vienna Over Iran Deal
KABUL: (MEP) US Secretary of State John Kerry is expected to land at Vienna, Austria airport on Saturday to meet and hold talks with his Iranian counterpart Javad Zarif and European Union High Representative Federica Mogherini on implementation of the Iran nuclear deal.
State Department spokesman Mark Toner said the meeting is in line with the agreement’s Joint Plan of Action (JCPOA).
“As we’ve said, all parties have continued making steady progress toward ‘Implementation Day’ of the JCPOA, which will ensure the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program,” Toner said.
Kerry’s trip comes as the UN nuclear agency is expected to verify Tehran’s compliance with its obligations under the JCPOA reached with six world powers last July.
Meanwhile, the U.N. International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is expected to verify whether Iran is complying with its commitment to curtail its nuclear program, clearing the way for the lifting of international sanctions.
White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest told a news briefing on Friday that Iran has made important progress in its effort to implement the nuclear agreement.
Earnest, however, said Iran will not get any sanctions relief until the IAEA verifies all steps have been completed, noting the US wants to insure that Tehran does not “cut any corners.”
Iran and the P5+1 – the United States, France, Britain, Russia, China and Germany – finalized the text of the JCPOA in Vienna in July 2015.
