Iran-5+1 talks will be held in Istanbul: statement

TEHRAN, April 10 (MNA) – Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, in a statement issued on Monday, announced that the talks between Tehran and the 5+1 group (the United States, Britain, France, Russia, China, and Germany) will be held in Istanbul on April 14. The statement also said that the two sides have agreed to hold the next round of talks in Baghdad, adding that the date of the Baghdad talks will be decided after the end of the Istanbul talks. AFP also quoted a spokesman for European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton as saying on Monday that world powers will hold a fresh round of nuclear talks with Iran in Istanbul on Saturday. “We have agreed to launch talks in Istanbul on April 14,” Michael Mann said. “We hope that this first round will produce a conducive environment for concrete progress. “We are of course aiming at a sustained process,” Mann added. On January 22, 2011, Iran and the 5+1 group wrapped up their last round of talks in Istanbul without achieving concrete results.