WASHINGTON--International negotiations aimed at reaching a
nuclear agreement with Iran could be extended past the Tuesday
deadline, U.K. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said Friday.
Mr. Hammond, visiting Washington, said the talks could last as
much as two weeks longer, coinciding with the U.S. congressional
recess. Lawmakers have been delaying action on legislation to ramp
up punitive sanctions against Iran in the absence of a deal by the
deadline, but the two-week congressional break provides negotiators
meeting in Lausanne, Switzerland, with more time, Mr. Hammond
said.
"I hope that doesn't mean we have to sit in Lausanne for another
two weeks just because there is another two weeks," Mr. Hammond
said. "It means we have got a little bit more negotiating time if
we need it, but I think we're all hopeful of getting it done as
soon as possible."
The March 31 deadline was a nonbinding target set after
negotiators were unable to meet a Nov. 24, 2014, deadline.
Negotiators had planned to hammer out a "framework" for an
agreement by the end of this month, with technical details due by
the end of June. Other officials have said the deadline could slip,
but Mr. Hammond's remarks came during what some diplomats have
described as the final round of talks.
Mr. Hammond didn't rule out the possibility of an agreement by
the Tuesday deadline.
"We're hopeful that we'll be making that progress over the next
48 hours, " Mr. Hammond said. "Of course we'd like it to happen
sooner, but if it takes longer, we'll keep at it, we'll stick at
it."
Secretary of State John Kerry is in Lausanne now, but Mr.
Hammond said he would wait to return to the talks until technical
differences have been settled and top international officials can
focus on "big-picture issues." That said, Mr. Hammond added that he
could fly to Switzerland as early as this weekend. Officials expect
him to arrive Sunday.
There are six "key areas of discussion" that await resolution
before reaching a framework accord, Mr. Hammond said.
"Some of them we are close enough that we can be sure we'll
reach an agreement," he said. "There are still some areas where we
are significantly apart. It's going to require a significant move
by the Iranians."
He added, "We're better than halfway in terms of having numbers
of areas where we are close enough that we can be confident in the
endgame."
As the talks continue, Britain is concerned about events in
Yemen, which increasingly have taken on the appearance of a proxy
war involving Iran and Saudi Arabia. Mr. Hammond said attempts are
under way to encourage parties in Yemen to return to a political
process.
Britain hopes both Yemen and the Saudis will cooperate in those
efforts, he said.
Mr. Hammond was in Washington to speak at the State Department
to an annual meeting of U.S. ambassadors. He is meeting Friday with
Sen. Bob Corker (R., Tenn.), chairman of the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee, and National Security Adviser Susan Rice.
Earlier Friday, he met with retired Gen. John Allen, the Obama
administration's envoy to the effort to battle Islamic State
militants.
Write to Felicia Schwartz at Felicia.Schwartz@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires