Iran says technical talks with US in Switzerland conclude successfully

Iran says technical talks in Switzerland with the United States and mediators have concluded successfully, paving the way for the next phase of negotiations aimed at ending their more than 100-day war. Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi, who led Iran’s technical negotiating team, said the four-party talks concluded with an agreement on arrangements for future negotiations, including working groups and implementation mechanisms, Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported on Tuesday. Recommended Stories list of 3 items end of list Gharibabadi said the discussions followed a high-level committee meeting held on Sunday to monitor the implementation of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, a framework agreement signed virtually by the US and Iranian presidents on June 17 to end the war. “Technical discussions were held to determine the implementation mechanisms of the memorandum of understanding and the statement issued at the conclusion of the high-level meeting, and the necessary understandings were reached,” he said. Earlier, Iran’s top negotiator Mohammad Ghalibaf said an agreement has been reached with the US to release $12bn in frozen Iranian assets. US President Donald Trump says those funds will be used to buy US produce. “We’re doing very well in terms of negotiating a fair and reasonable deal,” Trump said from the Oval Office. …