Iran nuclear talks appear near climax, but no deal yet

VIENNA, March 3 (Reuters) – Talks on reviving the 2015 Iran nuclear deal appeared to near a climax with talk of an imminent ministerial meeting as a U.N. report on Thursday showed Iran is most of the way to amassing enough enriched uranium for one bomb if purified further.

“We are close to a possible deal,” Jalina Porter, the U.S. State Department’s principal deputy spokesperson, told reporters but cautioned that unsolved issues remained and that time was of the essence given the pace of Iran’s nuclear advances.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report showed Iran’s stock of uranium enriched up to 60% fissile purity had almost doubled to 33.2 kg (110 pounds), which a senior diplomat said was around three-quarters of the amount needed, if enriched further, for a nuclear bomb according to a common yardstick.

The U.N. nuclear watchdog report was seen by Reuters as negotiators seek to resurrect the deal between world powers and Iran under which Tehran agreed to limit its nuclear program in return for relief from economic sanctions that slashed its oil exports.

Global oil prices, which had surged to their highest levels in roughly a decade because of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, steadied on expectations the deal may be restored, allowing more Iranian oil to flow into a tight market. read more

However, U.S., Iranian and European officials all said an agreement had not yet been struck even as some participants were upbeat.

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https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-nuclear-talks-appear-near-climax-no-deal-yet-2022-03-03/