Russia’s Lavrov says ‘all elements in place’ for Iran agreement

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Friday that “all the elements” were in place to reach an agreement on the Iranian nuclear programme, calling for a compromise at the Vienna talks.

“All the elements of an agreement are already on the table and the task of diplomats now is to correctly put together a package,” Lavrov told journalists in Moscow after discussing the talks with visiting Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal.

The Russian diplomat called for the negotiators to “show political will so that the result is based on the balance of interests, and is not subjected to attempts at the last minute to haggle something beyond what is realistic”.

“I am proceeding from the assumption that in the end common sense and the aim to reach a compromise on this long-standing problem will after all prevail,” Lavrov said.