Iran nuclear talks in Geneva stuck, go into second day

The Iranian delegation complained of a “confidence gap” at the end of the opening session of the second round of nuclear talks in Geneva Wednesday and demanded to have their confidence restored before returning to the table.

US delegation sources in briefings to reporters said there was a good chance of resolving the crisis of confidence with Iran but it would be very hard.  DEBKAfile’s sources, which have been skeptical from the start about the prospects of a deal, note that the Americans too were less positive then before. Clearly, sticking points remain requiring the conference to go into a second day Thursday. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s declaration in Tehran that Iran will not step back “one iota” from its “nuclear rights” had a dampening effect on the Iranian delegation and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif.