Deadlock over Iran's nuclear plans

Confidential talks between key European powers and Iran are deadlocked due to Iran’s refusal to scrap its uranium enrichment plans, diplomats said today.

Representatives from France, Britain, Germany and Iran met in Davos, Switzerland, to discuss Iran’s apparent “goal of maintaining” its enrichment programmes, a summary report said.

Several Western countries fear the uranium enrichment could be used to make nuclear weapons and have insisted on its dismantlement.

Diplomats familiar with the talks said the atmosphere between the two sides had improved during the second round, held in Geneva January 17.

But they said no progress is being made on the Europeans’ insistence that Iran’s temporary suspension of enrichment programmes be turned into a commitment to permanently halt all such activities.