TEHRAN – Iran’s negotiating team in Vienna led by Deputy Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araqchi has held separate trilateral and quadripartite meetings with the European, Chinese and Russian delegations. 

Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s permanent representative to the UN offices in Vienna, said on Monday that Araqchi held a trilateral meeting with the heads of the Russian and Chinese delegations to discuss the latest developments related to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

“Trilateral meeting between Iran, China and Russia. Heads of delegations discussed and reviewed issues related to ongoing JCPOA negotiations,” Gharibabadi said on Twitter. 

Mikhail Ulyanov, the head of the Russian delegation, also said that the JCPOA was discussed in the meeting.  “A trilateral meeting of the delegations of China, Iran and Russia at the Vienna talks on JCPOA was held today. The participants exchanged views on current state of affairs and the way ahead,” Ulyanov said in a tweet. 

During the meeting, the Iranian delegation explained its views on the draft texts and the remaining issues to the Chinese and Russian sides, according to Fars News. 

The Chinese and Russian delegations, while providing some comments and explanations, reiterated their full support for Iran's position, Fars News said. It added all three delegations stressed the importance of continuing to work seriously and away from any unreasonable haste or delay.

Following the trilateral meeting, Araqchi held a quadripartite meeting with European signatories to the JCPOA. 

Araqchi’s meetings came amid the fifth round of the nuclear talks currently underway in the Austrian Capital of Vienna. The talks made progress but are yet to reach a final stage. Araqchi has said that all parties are still serious and have taken these talks seriously and many delegations are hoping that this round can be the last round of talks and “we will reach a conclusion.”

“You can have such hope, but you have to be a little bit cautious. The issues that remain to be finalized and decided are still important issues, although their number has decreased and we have made great strides in writing the text in previous periods. We can move forward further, but the few issues that remain are still key issues that need to be decided,” he said.