Mohammad Javad Zarif

Talks between Iran and the US enter a "critical phase" June 28 with tensions rising just three days from a deadline to nail down a deal thwarting any Iranian nuclear arms drive.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry telephoned Iran's foreign minister in recent days to tell him that Tehran must answer questions about whether its past atomic research was arms-related if it wants a nuclear deal, officials said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif will travel to Vienna on June 27 to join a final push for a comprehensive nuclear agreement with major powers, state media reported.

US Secretary of State John Kerry broke his leg in bike crash May 31, apparently after hitting a curb, and scrapped the rest of a four-nation trip that included an international conference on combating the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

US Secretary of State John Kerry was hospitalised in Geneva on Sunday after a cycling accident across the border in France, the State Department said.
 

An Iranian negotiator on May 24 denied accepting military site inspections as part of a nuclear deal with world powers, a delicate issue in talks that must be concluded by the end of June.

Iran can play a major role in persuading Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to cooperate in peace talks, EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini said April 28.

US top diplomat John Kerry met his Iranian counterpart April 27 hoping to push forward tough nuclear negotiations as they reach the final phase, but also aiming to ease unrest in Yemen.

The United States will not stand by while Iran provides support to Shiite rebels who have seized much of Yemen, Secretary of State John Kerry said on April 8.
      
"There have been -- there are, obviously -- flights coming from Iran. Every single week there are flights from Iran and we've traced it and know this," Kerry told PBS television in an interview.
      

All United Nations Security Council resolutions related to Iran's nuclear programme will be lifted immediately if a final deal is agreed, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on April 4, stressing the benefits to Iran of this week's negotiations.