Roundup: Framework agreement for Iran nuclear talks not so optimistic: diplomatic source

Negotiations over Iran's nuclear program entered a critical phase on Monday with differences still remaining and the atmosphere here has changed from "optimism" to some kind of "gloom" among negotiators.

As foreign ministers from all the P5+1 countries, namely the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China plus Germany, and the EU top envoy all gathering in Lausanne when the March 31 deadline for a framework agreement or understanding approaches, there were signs that a possible framework agreement might be within reach.

However, a diplomatic source told Xinhua on Monday that there are still many uncertainties in announcing any achievements.

"It seems that they might be too much optimism at the beginning," the source said.

According to the source who don't want to be named, the possibility for the sides to reach a common understanding on Monday is very little, if still exist.

If after the final efforts the foreign ministers could announce something, the source said, it may be in a form of an agreement, but looks more likely to be a "declaration," "statement" or just a "press briefing statement."

The source told Xinhua that the three major issues blocking the nuclear talks still remained disputed.

"How to define Iran's right for uranium enrichment, how long should the final and comprehensive Iran nuclear deal last, and the arrangement for the lifting of the sanctions as well as the mechanism for replacing sanctions back into place, these three issues still need to be agreed on," the source said.

In an another move, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has decided to leave the Iranian nuclear talks Monday afternoon to return to Moscow, a sign also suggesting that a framework common ground for the final nuclear agreement isn't imminent.

Lavrov arrived in Lausanne Sunday evening. According to a source involved in the on-going talks, Lavrov may not be present at the plenary session planned for Monday afternoon.

On Nov. 24 of 2013, the P5+1 and Iran reached a first-step agreement on Iran's nuclear program, the Geneva 2013 Joint Plan of Action, which demanded Iran suspend some sensitive nuclear activities in exchange of limited sanction relief to buy time for the diplomatic effort to resolve the issue.

Since then, the P5+1 and Iran have twice missed self-imposed deadlines for a final and comprehensive accord, respectively in June and November last year, and the negotiators then set March 31 of 2015 as a new deadline for a political framework agreement and June 30 for the final deal.

From the beginning of 2015, the six major world powers have been negotiating with Iran almost nonstop, round after round and meeting after meeting, in an effort to put Iran's nuclear program under international control in return for easing of sanctions. Endit