US Says Technical Talks With Iran Remain On Track

WASHINGTON, June 29 (dpa) -- The United States expects further talks with Iran in the coming days despite several attacks during what is supposed to be a ceasefire, a senior US administration official told dpa on Sunday.

"Nothing has been cancelled," the official said.

Technical talks on implementing the memorandum of understanding remain "on track for the coming days as planned," the official said, adding that deconfliction channels were "up and running" after the Lake Lucerne summit.

No location for possible talks was given.

Earlier this week, the United States carried out strikes on targets in Iran following attacks in the Strait of Hormuz that Washington blamed on Tehran. The attacks threatened to reignite the conflict, almost two weeks after the signing of the memorandum of understanding.

On Wednesday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio held out the prospect of further US-Iran talks at the technical level and mentioned Monday or Tuesday as a possible timeframe. He also said he expected negotiations to again take place in Switzerland.

Last Sunday, senior representatives of the US, Iran and the mediator states Pakistan and Qatar met for talks at a luxury resort near Lucerne. They agreed to set up working groups on issues including sanctions and Iran's nuclear programme, as well as contact groups on the Strait of Hormuz and the ceasefire in Lebanon.

The negotiations build on the memorandum of understanding reached between the US and Iran. Further talks are aimed at finding a possible way out of the war that the US and Israel began against Iran on February 28.

--NNN-dpa