U.S. remains determined Iran will not acquire nuclear weapon

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at the end of the Iranian nuclear talks in Geneva. 

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday that the United States is determined to ensure that Iran does not acquire a nuclear weapon following talks in Geneva that failed to reach an agreement on Tehran’s nuclear program.

“We came to Geneva determined to make certain that Iran does not acquire a nuclear weapon. That remains our goal,” Kerry was quoted as saying by Agence France-Presse, after three days of intensive negotiations between world powers and Iran.

While no deal was reached, Kerry insisted negotiators had “made significant progress,” in Geneva.

“There's no question in my mind that we are closer now (to a deal) as we leave Geneva,” he said, according to AFP.

Kerry’s comment came after EU diplomatic chief Catherine Ashton said the talks would reconvene on Nov. 20.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Sunday he hoped Iran and the P5+1 countries would reach an agreement in their next meeting, adding that the latest round of talks was something all delegations can build on.

“We have done some intense negotiations and discussions and our objective is to reach a conclusion and that's what we will come back to try and do,” Zarif was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Iran’s President Hassan Rowhani had urged world powers not to miss an “exceptional opportunity” to reach an agreement in the Geneva talks.

“I hope that the P5+1 group make the most out of this exceptional opportunity that the Iranian nation has offered to the international community, so that we can reach a positive result within a reasonable timeframe,” he was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency.

The Secretary of State had cut short his Middle East tour to attend the talks but insisted he was not discouraged to be leaving without an agreement.

“It takes time to build confidence between countries who have been really at odds for a long time,” he said, pointing to the standstill in diplomatic ties between Washington and Tehran since the 1979 Iranian revolution.

The P5+1 group of world powers, comprising permanent U.N. Security Council members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- plus Germany, suspect Iran's nuclear program is aimed at developing nuclear weapons, despite Tehran's repeated denials.

Source: english.alarabiya.net