| Iran nuclear talks open in Baghdad |
The P5+1 powers - the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany - hope to persuade Iran in Wednesday's negotiations to suspend some of the most worrying parts of its activities but Tehran wants to see sanctions eased in return. |
Iran is represented by Saeed Jalili, the lead negotiator, while the delegation from the six world powers is led by Catherine Ashton, the European Union foreign policy head.
'New era'
News agencies quoted diplomats from the P5+1 and Iranian media as saying the meeting in the fortress-like Green Zone of the Iraqi capital would likely go into a second, unscheduled day.
Jalili said he hoped the talks would be the start of a "new era" in relations, Iranian media reported.
"We sense that the West has realised that the time for using its pressure strategy is over," Jalili was quoted as saying by the Fars and Mehr news agencies.
Israel, Washington's closest ally in the region, feels its very existence would be under threat and has refused to rule out a pre-emptive strike on Iran's nuclear facilities.
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Meanwhile, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, will visit China in June for a security summit and discuss the nuclear programme with Hu Jintao, his Chinese counterpart, a senior diplomat said on Wednesday, criticising new sanctions aimed at Iran.
The summit is likely to be overshadowed by the presence of Ahmadinejad, whose country is at the centre of a standoff with the West over the nuclear programme.
"Certainly, during his meeting with President Hu, the Iran nuclear issue will be an important talking point," the diplomat said.
The visit to China takes on particular significance as China is a veto-wielding permanent member of the Security Council and has resisted US demands for sanctions on Iran.
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