Iran nuke deal within reach, says Rohani

A nuclear deal with international powers on Iran's nuclear program is within reach and achievable, Iranian President Hassan Rohani told reporters yesterday.

Rohani said negotiators from both sides have found new common ground in recent days, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported.

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The president believes that "clinching a general deal is easy," according to the IRNA story, but hammering out agreements on certain details "will be a very tough and complicated job."

Iran has been largely isolated for years for its nuclear program, one that its leaders say the country wants for peaceful purposes. Others, like the United States, have challenged that assertion and instituted strict sanctions, fearing that Tehran actually plans to develop nuclear weapons.

After years of basic stalemates, Iranian officials and representatives of the P5+1 -- which includes Germany as well as the five permanent members of the UN Security Council in the United States, Russia, China, France and Britain -- have managed to reach short-term agreements as they try to strike a larger deal.

The sides have been working toward that end recently in Lausanne, Switzerland, hoping to get a framework pact in place ahead of a March 31 deadline.

Meanwhile, US Secretary of State John Kerry yesterday said that world powers were "united" in their approach to nuclear talks with Iran despite speculation of splits with France, and stressed that he would not rush into a bad deal.

"I emphasise: We are united in our goal, our approach, our resolve and our determination to ensure that Iran's programme is entirely peaceful," Kerry said in Switzerland before leaving for London for talks with his British, French and German counterparts.