Iran said on the eve of talks with Britain, France and Germany that it is not prepared to accept a
permanent freeze of its controversial nuclear fuel work. Foreign ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told reporters in Tehran today that the permanent suspension of enrichment is not on our agenda. He said that a short-term freeze is what the country is stressing.
Iran and the EU are to meet in Brussels tomorrow for the start of negotiations on a long-term deal in which Iran would receive peaceful nuclear technology, trade benefits and regional security help in return for suspending uranium enrichment, the key part of the nuclear fuel cycle.
Iranian officials call this new round of talks with Europe the second out of the three rounds of talks on nuclear issues. The first, they say, ended with Paris agreement last month.
Hassan Rohani, the chairman of Iran’s Security Council and the chief negotiator in nuclear issues, said that the participants in the second round of talks are going to be mainly the same diplomats and experts who took part in Paris negotiations.
