Hillary Clinton warns against sanctions on Iran

Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has warned against imposing more sanctions on Iran, saying the US Congress should give diplomacy a chance to work.

Clinton made the remarks in a letter to Democratic Senator Carl Levin on January 26, published by the lawmaker on Sunday.

“Now that serious negotiations are finally under way, we should do everything we can to test whether they can advance a permanent solution,” Clinton said.

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said at a panel discussion during the 50th Munich Security Conference in Germany that any agreement on Iran’s nuclear program should be based on mutual confidence.

Iran and the Sextet of world powers – the United States, France, Britain, Russia, China and Germany – inked an interim deal on Iran’s nuclear energy program in Geneva, Switzerland, on November 24 last year.

The accord is aimed at setting the stage for the full resolution of the West’s decade-old standoff with Tehran over its nuclear energy program.

Under the Geneva deal, which was implemented on January 20, the six countries undertook to provide Iran with some sanctions relief in exchange for Tehran agreeing to limit certain aspects of its nuclear activities during a six-month period. It was also agreed that no nuclear-related sanctions would be imposed on the country within the same timeframe.

European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said on Friday that the next round of nuclear talks between Iran and the Sextet of world powers would be held in Vienna on February 18.