TEHRAN: Senior US and Iranian officials said on Saturday they could be close to a breakthrough in talks to strike a draft deal to end the war in the Middle East. Iran said gaps remain between the parties, and the dispute over its nuclear programme would not be part of the initial talks.
But US Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed optimism, just as Pakistan’s army chief, a key go-between between the United States and Iran, left Tehran after two days of talks with senior Iranian leaders.
“There is a chance that, whether it’s later today, tomorrow, in a couple days, we may have something to say,” Rubio told reporters Saturday during a visit to New Delhi, adding that he hoped that he would soon be able to announce “good news”. The Iranian foreign ministry also said that a draft deal might at last be close.
“Our intention was first to draft a memorandum of understanding, a kind of framework agreement composed of 14 clauses,” foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on state television.
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