U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry made history Thursday, holding one-on-one nuclear talks with his Iranian counterpart, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.
Their meeting in New York was the highest-level talks between U.S. and Iranian officials since the Islamic revolution of 1979, when American hostages were seized and diplomatic ties came to a standstill.
Kerry said he was pleased to see Zarif come to New York to meet with the major world powers. He said Zarif put some "possibilities" on the table.
Before his separate meeting with Kerry, Zarif met with foreign ministers from the five permanent U.N. Security Council members and Germany about Iran's nuclear program.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said the tone and spirit of the talks were extremely good and were a big improvement over the recent past.
All sides plan to meet again next month in Geneva.
Iran is under international sanctions over suspicions it is trying to build a nuclear weapon. But Tehran insists its nuclear program is strictly for peaceful civilian purposes, and says it has a right to carry out such a program.
Iran's new President Hassan Rouhani says he wants a deal on his country's nuclear program in three to six months, saying the "only way forward" is for a timeline to be inserted into the talks.
During a U.N. disarmament meeting, Mr. Rouhani said no nations should possess nuclear weapons. He says there are no "right hands for these wrong weapons."
He says nuclear disarmament is Iran's highest priority and called on Israel to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and put its widely suspected nuclear arms under international control.
Their meeting in New York was the highest-level talks between U.S. and Iranian officials since the Islamic revolution of 1979, when American hostages were seized and diplomatic ties came to a standstill.
Kerry said he was pleased to see Zarif come to New York to meet with the major world powers. He said Zarif put some "possibilities" on the table.
Before his separate meeting with Kerry, Zarif met with foreign ministers from the five permanent U.N. Security Council members and Germany about Iran's nuclear program.
British Foreign Secretary William Hague said the tone and spirit of the talks were extremely good and were a big improvement over the recent past.
All sides plan to meet again next month in Geneva.
Iran is under international sanctions over suspicions it is trying to build a nuclear weapon. But Tehran insists its nuclear program is strictly for peaceful civilian purposes, and says it has a right to carry out such a program.
Iran's new President Hassan Rouhani says he wants a deal on his country's nuclear program in three to six months, saying the "only way forward" is for a timeline to be inserted into the talks.
During a U.N. disarmament meeting, Mr. Rouhani said no nations should possess nuclear weapons. He says there are no "right hands for these wrong weapons."
He says nuclear disarmament is Iran's highest priority and called on Israel to join the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and put its widely suspected nuclear arms under international control.