TEHRAN – A senior Iranian expert who accompanied the Iranian negotiating team in Vienna has said that the talks in Vienna have not resulted in a final agreed-on text yet.

The expert, Seyed Mohammad Marandi, expressed surprise over allegations by some journalists who claimed that the talks have reached a final text.

“I'm surprised that some journalists seem to think the Vienna talks are concluded. There is no final agreed upon text yet,” he said on Twitter. “We're near the finish line and the US and E3 need to stop dragging their feet like children.”

The tweet also seems to be refuting the assessment of the European Union foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, who said there is a final text.

“A pause in #ViennaTalks is needed, due to external factors. A final text is essentially ready and on the table. As coordinator, I will, with my team, continue to be in touch with all #JCPOA participants and the U.S. to overcome the current situation and to close the agreement,” Borrell said on Twitter.

Earlier, the senior coordinator of the Vienna talks had said the negotiations are at a critical juncture and now the U.S. and Iran must show more flexibility in their message exchanges and must try to overcome the time limit.

He made the remarks in a telephone conversation with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian.

The two diplomats held talks over the latest results and the trend of the Vienna talks to remove anti-Iran sanctions as well as some other international issues of mutual interest including the Ukraine crisis.

Borrell said that economic guarantees are important for Iran and the EU supports this, adding, “You and we will continue our efforts to reach a deal because we have come a long way. You Iranians are tough and highly capable negotiators.” The Iranian foreign minister, for his part, thanked the EU foreign policy chief and senior coordinator of the Vienna talks for his efforts and the progress made so far. Amir Abdollahian said, “If all sides behave realistically, we are still close to reaching a good and robust deal.”

The foreign minister of Iran underlined that the making of new demands by the U.S. has no logical justification and this is at odds with the country’s stance on swiftly reaching an agreement.

Amir Abdollahian added that the main issues and sanctions removal must not be affected by the excessive demands on the part of the U.S., according to the Iranian Foreign Ministry.

The top Iranian diplomat also said the U.S. cannot convey a new and different message to the Iranian negotiating team through the coordinator under the pretext of being under the pressure of the American public opinion. “If the U.S. faces a problem in terms of public opinion, I should say that we also face the problem of public opinion in Iran [and] they are monitoring the developments very closely and carefully and seek answers from the government and demand it get the sanctions lifted and preserve a highly peaceful nuclear energy.”

Amir Abdollahian also underscored that the issues related to Iran’s “national heroes” are non-negotiable.

Elsewhere in his comments, the Iranian foreign minister outlined the principled position of the Islamic Republic of Iran regarding the Ukraine crisis. He emphasized, “We believe, while considering the UN Charter, that the root-cause of this crisis must be addressed so that lasting stability and security are established in the region through halting the war and focusing on political solutions.”