Iranian and western officials claimed to have made a breakthrough in nuclear negotiations in Lausanne on Thursday night, and said they were drafting a joint statement.

After eight days of talks, often going late into the night, the Iranian foreign minister Mohammed Javad Zarif tweeted: “Found solutions. Ready to start drafting immediately.”

A few minutes earlier, the EU foreign policy chief Frederica Mogherini tweeted that she and Zarif would soon have “good news” for the waiting press.

Diplomats said that even as journalists were told to assemble at a technical institute in Lausanne, Iranian and western foreign ministers were still negotiating the text of an accord.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/02/iran-nuclear-talks-breakthrough-lausanne

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) -- Iran and six world powers have agreed on the outlines of an understanding to limit Iran's nuclear programs, negotiators indicated Thursday, as both sides prepared for announcements.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted: "Found solutions. Ready to start drafting immediately."

European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini tweeted that she would meet the press with Zarif after a final meeting of the seven nations in the nuclear talks. She wrote: "Good news."

The officials spoke following weeklong talks that have been twice extended past the March 31 deadline in an effort to formulate both a general statement of what has been accomplished and documents describing what needs to be done to meet a June 30 deadline for a final accord.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/I/IRAN_NUCLEAR_TALKS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-04-02-13-18-21

love the most. This negotiating with other countries to solve international problems is just not their style.

if they want?

The letter they sent to Iran warned that country's leaders that any agreement they reached with Obama would not last past his term in office.

republicans were trying to pass a law that would require that the administration submit any agreement to congress for ratification. You are right. Any agreement that Obama has recently achieved (environmental agreements with China and India and a diplomatic agreement with Cuba) or might soon complete (with Iran) would be rejected by a republican congress.

Live on Spanish public TV news channel now

JERUSALEM (AP) -- Israel's prime minister is demanding that the deal between Iran and world powers - which is expected to be announced imminently - `significantly' curb Iran's nuclear program.

Benjamin Netanyahu put out a statement on his Twitter feed, moments before Iran and international negotiators in Switzerland were expected to make a statement on Thursday.

He says: "Any deal must significantly roll back Iran's nuclear capabilities and stop its terrorism and aggression."

Netanyahu has been a vocal critic of the talks, saying the expected deal would leave Iran's suspect nuclear infrastructure intact.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/ML_ISRAEL_IRAN_NUCLEAR_TALKS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-04-02-13-29-04

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Barack Obama has delayed his departure for a trip to Kentucky because of the Iran nuclear talks in Switzerland.

Obama had planned to visit a Louisville-based technology company Thursday to discuss job training and Republican plans to repeal the estate tax.

But then word came that an agreement had been reached in the marathon talks over curbing Iran's nuclear program.

It's unclear whether Obama will go ahead with the trip.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_OBAMA?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-04-02-13-28-19

John Kerry is a public servant to be proud of, and a man I am proud to call my hero...

The British diplomat Harold Nicolson observed in 1960 that “a good negotiation takes about as long as it takes an elephant to have a baby.”

That has been true in the protracted Iran nuclear talks, although in this case, the baby may turn out to be stillborn.

Negotiators were still haggling over the framework as they pushed through Tuesday night’s deadline. Officials cautioned that some details remained fuzzy. That’s a bad sign – especially in terms of approval by a U.S. Congress that may opt for deal-killing sanctions if members think the agreement is too vague.

Whatever the endgame produces, it’s useful to focus on the process of negotiation itself, which is nearly as important as whether there’s a sustainable deal.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Columnist/2015/Apr-02/293024-with-or-without-a-nuclear-accord-change-has-come.ashx

As a coalition of mainly Sunni countries has formed to contain Iran’s expanding power in the Middle East, many eyes are turned on Hezbollah.

The party has long embodied Iranian successes in the region, but now it has come to reflect Iranian limitations thanks to the blowback provoked by these successes.

In his most recent speech Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah condemned the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen against the Houthis. Hezbollah also expressed displeasure with Prime Minister Tammam Salam’s speech at the Arab League summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, in which he seemed to implicitly support the operation in Yemen. Yet the party found itself isolated at home, with the Aounists supporting Salam. Fears that the Cabinet might collapse as a consequence were not borne out.

That was not surprising, since Hezbollah is stretched to the limits. It cannot afford a political vacuum in Lebanon, because its ability to control a worsening situation on the ground is lacking. The party needs an effective Lebanese Army and state not only to maintain domestic peace, but also to legitimize its planned military campaign in the Qalamoun area of Syria against rebels opposed to Bashar Assad’s regime.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Columnist/2015/Apr-02/293025-the-regional-quagmire-traps-hezbollah.ashx

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