Kerry, Zarif reaffirm progress but tough issues remain

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and US Secretary of State John Kerry on Friday reiterated progress had been achieved but some tough issues still needed to be settled.

Talking to the press in Vienna ahead of their bilateral meeting at the Palais Coburg Hotel, Kerry said, “Our teams have been working diligently all day to maximize progress and it is fair to say both sides are working extremely hard with a great sense of purpose and a sincere and good faith effort to make progress. We are making progress and we have a lot of work to do and some tough issues to face.”

Referring to time constraints for a comprehensive final nuclear accord, Kerry pointed out both sides would continue their work over the weekend to seal an agreement.

“We both wanna try to see, if we can find a conclusion,” the US diplomat said.

Kerry’s remarks were underscored by Zarif who said, we are all trying very hard to be able to move forward.

“We have made some progress. There are still some issues to be discussed which need to be resolved. I think with a political will, we will,” Iran’s chief diplomat said.