Iran says still 'major problems' in nuclear talks

Iran warned on June 26 that "some major problems" need to be resolved before a historic nuclear deal can be agreed, as US Secretary of State John Kerry prepared to fly to Vienna for crunch weekend talks.

The United States, admitting for the first time that the June 30 deadline may be missed by a few days, had said on June 25 that "tough political decisions" still have to be made and that "some of the trickiest issues" remain under discussion.
 
With Kerry due late June 26 and other ministers from Iran and major powers expected this weekend, Iran's lead negotiator said: "Some major problems exist which are still blocking the work."  

Abbas Araghchi, who is deputy foreign minister, told state television however that "in other areas we have made good progress... Overall, the work is moving ahead slowly and with difficulty".
 
Iran's IRNA news agency meanwhile quoted a source as saying that the remaining gaps "all involve issues of substantial and essential divergence".
 
The P5+1 -- the United States, China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany -- want Iran to curtail its nuclear activities in order to make any push to make nuclear weapons all but impossible.
 
The deal, it is hoped, would put an end to a standoff dating back to 2002 that has threatened to escalate into armed conflict and poisoned the Islamic republic's relations with the international community.
 
In return for downsizing its activities and allowing closer UN inspections, Iran, which denies wanting nuclear weapons, would see painful UN and Western sanctions that have choked its economy lifted.
 
In April the P5+1 and Iran massively raised hopes that a resolution to the long-running crisis was in sight when they reached an...