Top diplomats from Iran and the US launched a new round of marathon talks on a nuclear deal late Monday, as Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu warned the emerging accord could threaten his country's survival.
US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif met twice in a Swiss lakeside hotel at the start of a series of sessions which are scheduled to stretch into Wednesday afternoon.
They were accompanied by US Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz and Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi, who according to the Iranian news agency IRNA had first met earlier for about 90 minutes.
The pace and intensity of the negotiations to hammer out a deal to rein in Iran's suspected nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief have gathered pace as a March 31 deadline for a political accord nears.
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He stressed that global powers, grouped under the P5+1, were not seeking "a deal at any cost" but wanted to ensure that the "four pathways to a nuclear bomb have been closed off."
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Kerry and Zarif first met for about 50 minutes Monday evening, and after a short break, held a second 25-minute meeting before calling it a night.
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As a deal appears within grasp, the US administration has clashed with Israel, with Netanyahu saying he would address Congress on Tuesday "to speak up about a potential deal with Iran that could threaten the survival of Israel."
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Kerry and Zarif have met frequently in past weeks in European cities, hoping to pin down a deal which has eluded the international community for more than a decade.
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