Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki listens to translation at a press conference at United Nations headquarters October 1, 2009 in New York City. Senior officials from the U.S. and Iran met for rare discussions on nuclear issues in Geneva. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Both the United States and Iran said Geneva talks between Tehran and the P5 + 1 powers—the United States, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China—were productive. They agreed the contacts would be resumed by the end of the month.
"We began good talks in today's negotiations," Tehran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili told Iranian media. "We have common view points with which we will deal in the continuing talks."
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, speaking in Washington after the talks, said the meeting had "opened the door".
"I think it was a productive day but the proof of that has not yet come to fruition so we will wait and continue to press our point of view and see what Iran decides to do."
U.S. Undersecretary of State William Burns had met Jalili on the fringes of the P5+1 talks, an encounter that underlined President Barack Obama's attempts to forge a closer relationship with the Islamic Republic.
Western suspicions that Iran is secretly developing a nuclear weapon were fueled by Tehran's failure to inform the International Atomic Energy Agency in the past of nuclear research installations.
Time Pressing
Iran declared construction of a second uranium enrichment facility, at Qom last week, deepening Western fears. Uranium refined to a lower level is necessary for nuclear power stations but in higher state of enrichment for bombs.
The West wants Iran to allow immediate U.N. inspections at the plant and give access to documents and employees. Western officials have spoken of the possibility of further sanctions on Iran, possible in the oil and gas industry.
Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said at the United Nations that Iran, which says its programme is only for peaceful purposes, had now declared all its nuclear facilities.
"Time is pressing. There must be proof of a deep evolution in the management of Iran's nuclear programme," Jacques Audibert told reporters. "For instance it must allow access to the second site, Qom, in the next two weeks," he said.
A Western diplomat close to the talks said the understanding among the six powers was that Iran would have to permit IAEA inspections of the Qom site over the next few weeks and that they wanted to see concrete steps taken by Tehran by the time they all meet again towards the end of the month.
