US secretary of state meets Iranian FM
Kerry, Zarif discuss threat posed by Islamic State and nuclear negotiations
UNITED NATIONS — US Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday raised the threat of Islamic militants in Iraq and Syria directly with his Iranian counterpart in high-level talks in New York, a US official said.
Kerry met Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif for more than an hour at a hotel, during which they discussed progress in their nuclear negotiations and “also discussed the threat posed by ISIL,” a senior State Department official said, referring to the Islamic State group.
Their meeting Sunday came on the third day of the latest round of nuclear talks between Iran and six world powers — the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany.
The talks have been stalled for months over Iran’s opposition to sharply reducing the size and output of centrifuges that can enrich uranium both to levels needed for reactor fuel or the core of nuclear warheads.
Iran says its enrichment program is only for peaceful purposes, but Washington fears it could be used to make a bomb.