(VOVworld) – A senior US official said after nuclear talks with Iran on Wednesday that some progress continued to be made but much work remained to be done, adding the aim was still to reach a deal by a late November deadline. The State Department official spoke after about six hours of talks between US Secretary of State John Kerry, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton in Vienna. Iran and six world powers - the United States, France, Germany, China, Russia and Britain - aim to end a decade-long nuclear standoff by a Nov. 24 target date. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif told the press after Wednesday talks that there was a serious need for finding serious and innovative solutions and that more time was needed to work on finding them.
US Secretary of State John Kerry (C) walks to his car with Austria's Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz (R) as he arrives at Vienna International Airport, in Vienna October 15, 2014. Photo: AP
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The negotiations are centered on curbing Iran's atomic activity, which Tehran says is peaceful but the West fears may be aimed at developing nuclear weapons capability, in exchange for lifting sanctions. US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said before Wednesday’s meeting that the US was still exploring the possibility of reaching a comprehensive agreement with Iran by the end of the deadline for the talks next month.