Obama gets update from nuke talks team amid mounting pressure

US President Barack Obama spoke Wednesday to Secretary of State John Kerry and other members of the US delegation in Vienna thrashing out the fine details of a nuclear agreement with Iran.

A terse White House statement gave little away about the content of the “secure video conference,” which came as the West upped the pressure on Tehran in a high-stakes game of diplomatic brinkmanship.

“The president reviewed the progress of negotiations to date and provided guidance related to our ongoing efforts to achieve a good deal between the P5+1 and Iran that meets our requirements,” said the one-paragraph statement, adding that Obama had his national security team with him.

Global powers are chasing a deal curbing Tehran’s nuclear ambitions and ending a 13-year standoff over suspicions Iran has sought to develop a nuclear bomb — allegations it has long denied.

Iran and six world powers on Tuesday effectively gave themselves until Friday to reach a deal by extending a November 2013 interim accord, after missing two target dates in this latest round of roller-coaster talks.

On Wednesday, the Politico website reported Obama had put the chances for a deal at less than 50 percent.

“He said the chances he thought were less than 50-50 at this point and that he wouldn’t agree to something he thought was weak or unenforceable,” Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois told the website, recounting a conversation he had with Obama the night before.

If the US Congress does not get the deal by Friday morning, the review period doubles to 60 days, giving opponents more time to reject it. During this time the president cannot waive Congressional sanctions, the most painful ones for Iran.

If they do reject it, then Obama has 12 days to accept or veto. Congress then has another 10 days to override the veto, meaning the entire process could take up to 82 days.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.