ISTANBUL, Sept. 19 (Xinhua) -- Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili said here Wednesday that Iran and the European Union (EU) have agreed to hold a new round of nuclear talks in the near future.
Jalili made the statement at a press conference after he had talks with EU foreign affairs representative Catherine Ashton in Istanbul on Tuesday.
The Iranian official said the time for the upcoming nuclear talks will be decided when Ashton goes back and submit report to the P5+1 -- the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany.
An Iranian diplomat told Xinhua that it would take at least one month to start the new round of nuclear talks.
On Tuesday, Ashton met with Iranian officials in Istanbul in a bid to end the standoff over the Iranian nuclear program. The two sides had a 40-minute close-door meeting in Conrad Hotel on Tuesday afternoon, and then moved to Iranian consulate general for 3-hour talks during dinner.
The meetings were closed to the press, while a spokeswoman for Ashton said earlier that the meeting was "part of continuing efforts to engage Iran." Jalili, on the other hand, said the two sides were satisfied with what they had agreed during the talks.
Iran has insisted that its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes, and warned that it will retaliate if it comes under attack.
Iranian nuclear talks in June ended without a breakthrough, while the P5+1 are expected to discuss with Tehran on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York later this month.
As for the Syrian crisis, Jalili said that no outsiders' intervention under the name of Syrian people could solve the ongoing crisis.
"No arms or terrorist activities could end the war in Syria; no military intervention could end the war in Syria. Syrian's problem should be solved by Syrian people themselves," Jalili stressed at the press conference held in Iranian Consulate General in Istanbul.
BEIJING, Sept. 19 (Xinhuanet) -- Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili, has met with the EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, in the Turkish capital Ankara.
The meeting is part of a continuing effort by the international community to engage Iran over its nuclear program. Iran is at odds with the United States and its allies over its disputed nuclear program. The West fears Iran aims at developing nuclear weapons, while Tehran denies its program has any military purpose. Full story
ISTANBUL, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- EU foreign affairs representative Catherine Ashton held talks with Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili here on Tuesday in a bid to end the standoff over the Iranian nuclear program.
The two sides had a 40-minute close-door meeting in Istanbul's Conrad Hotel Tuesday afternoon and then moved to Iranian consulate general in Istanbul for more talks during dinner. Full story
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