Delegations representing Iran and the G5+1 have arrived in Almati, Kazakhstan in time to resume nuclear talks on February 26.
The talks are scheduled for one day, but a number of Iranian media outlets have indicated that they can possibly stretch to Wednesday.
Saeed Jalili, the head of Iran’s National Security Supreme Council, is leading the Iranian delegation and arrived in Almati on Sunday night to meet with Nursultan Nazarbayov, the president of Kazakhstan.
Catherine Ashton, the head of EU foreign policy, will lead the G5+1 delegation in the talks.
The U.S. foreign ministry has indicated that the United States is entering the talks in good faith and is prepared to drop sanctions if Iran halts its uranium enrichment.
The head of Iran’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, has told Al-Alam television network that an end to 20-percent uranium enrichment can only come about if all sanctions against Iran are dropped.
Iran is facing widespread international sanctions on its oil and financial sectors by the EU and the U.S., who demand that Iran end its uranium enrichment program.
Ayatollah Khamenei has condemned the sanctions against Iran, calling them “savage”, and has dismissed the U.S. offers of direct negotiations, saying talks cannot happen when one party is “holding a gun to your head.”
