China Balks as Geithner Presses on Iran Curbs

A US-led group of countries and Iran may be on the verge of signing a landmark nuclear accord that the US believes will diminish Tehran's pathways to a nuclear weapon.

New York (AFP) - Top US diplomat John Kerry was to meet his Iranian counterpart Friday for a second time in two days, amid reports that tough talks on reining in Tehran's nuclear program have deadlocked.

Iran and six world powers have agreed on how to implement a nuclear deal struck in November, with its terms starting from Jan. 20, officials announced Sunday. The announcement, made first by Iranian officials and later confirmed elsewhere, starts a six-month clock for a final deal to be struck over the Islamic Republic’s contested nuclear program. It also signals an easing of the financial sanctions crippling Iran’s economy, though some U.S. lawmakers have called for tough measures against the country.

Iran said Tuesday it would not scrap any of its nuclear facilities, drawing a red line in negotiations with six world powers seeking deep cutbacks in Tehran’s atomic program in exchange for an end to crippling economic sanctions. The statement by Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi suggested tough talks ahead, constituting a rejection of a central demand by the six countries. The talks are designed to build on a first-step deal that came into effect last month and commits Iran to initial curbs on its nuclear program in return for some easing of sanctions.

GENEVA (Reuters) - President Barack Obama has pulled off a historic deal with Iran on curbing its nuclear program but he and other global leaders now have tough work ahead turning an interim accord into a comprehensive agreement.

President Barack Obama has pulled off a historic deal with Iran on curbing its nuclear program but he and other global leaders now have tough work ahead turning an interim accord into a comprehensive agreement. In a sign of how difficult the coming talks will be, some differences emerged between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his Iranian counterpart in their public presentation of a key part of the deal – whether or not Iran preserved the right to enrich uranium. Now the really hard part begins

With this year's APEC meeting in China having just barely concluded, where the biggest news was not the inability of the US to make any material headway in trans-Pacific trade (who needs trade when you have a printer?) or that China is "willing" to import even more NSA bugs courtesy of Cisco and Qualcomm, but Russia's second "western" mega gas deal with China, as well as the following photo-op of course...

World powers reacted with optimism to Iranian proposals on ways to end a decade-long nuclear standoff as two days of talks got underway in Geneva.