[caption id="attachment_111995" align="alignright" width="170"] Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for European and American Affairs Majid Takht-e-Ravanchi[/caption]

“Significant progress” was made in the recent nuclear talks with the US over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program, Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Majid Takht Ravanchi said.

Takht Ravanchi expressed hope that more positive steps would be taken in the next round of negotiations in the coming week.

Iranian diplomat who is a member of the country’s nuclear negotiating team made the remarks during a meeting with Danish Foreign Minister Martin Lidegaard, Iran’s ISNA news agency reported Feb. 26.

Takht Ravanchi said that some members of the P5+1(the US, UK, France, Russia, China, and Germany) use “cruel sanctions” as a pressure lever and don’t want to remove the sanctions.

He further emphasized that the sanctions should be lifted unconditionally.

The latest of nuclear talks was for the first time attended by Chairman of Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Ali Akbar Salehi and US Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz. The two attended the talks to discuss detailed technical issues.

A fresh round of Iran-P5+1 talks will be held in Geneva on March 2. Iran and the six governments are aiming to reach a political understanding by March 31 and agree on a comprehensive deal by a self-imposed June 30 deadline.

Takht Ravanchi is visiting Denmark to promote bilateral relations. The Iranian official left Tehran on Feb 25 for a two-day visit to Copenhagen to discuss the latest regional and international developments, and voice Tehran's readiness for boosting relations with the European country.

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