'We Have Made Good Progress': State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce Provides Update On US-Iran Talks

During a State Department press briefing, spokesperson Tammy Bruce was asked about talks between the US and Iran to secure a new nuclear deal.

Transcript

00:00Two questions.

00:02The Iranians indicating that they want an interim agreement and not a comprehensive agreement.

00:07Is this something that you would entertain or do you think that it is feasible in the

00:12next round of negotiation?

00:13And second, also they said that the U.S. seems to be in agreement of keeping some kind of

00:20a nuclear facilities for peaceful use.

00:24And is this also something that you endorse or do you think that Iran should not have

00:29at all any kind of nuclear material that could have been developed, whether it's for peaceful

00:34or military use?

00:35MS.

00:36Well, there's been a very bright line about what's acceptable and what's not acceptable.

00:38Not acceptable is having a nuclear weapon.

00:41That is the one bright line that has been feeding all of the activity.

00:45I can give you an update on – well, the ongoing talks – I might give you a gauge here.

00:50The next round of talks are taking place on – we have a team – I guess it's the

00:57IAEA's plan is to send a team to Iran this week.

01:02The next round of talks will take place in Oman on Saturday and will be the first meeting

01:06of technical teams.

01:08And we can also tell you that the Director of Policy Planning, Michael Anton, will in

01:14fact be heading the technical delegation.

01:18And yes, Special Envoy Whitcoff also will be present.

01:23Obviously I will not – and you know – that I will not discuss the details of any proposals,

01:29real or nonexistent discussions, negotiations, what one party says versus another.

01:36What I found – and I know it just sounds like rhetoric, but it's true – is that these

01:41are very detailed, person-to-person conversations about issues that affect millions of lives.

01:49And the things that get talked about on TV by people or pundits, which – I love pundits,

01:54I was one – it does not help or really shed any great light on the nature of what's going

02:01on.

02:02But what it can do sometimes is frighten people and put people in an even more

02:06heart-breaking suffering situation.

02:11So it's – I understand that, and that's why I'm reticent, because also there's

02:17other countries and people involved, and there's something – you don't – it's

02:21important to not say things that can be misinterpreted.

02:25And we are determined to not do that, considering what's happening around the world.

02:29But what we do know is clear, and we've been, I think, as transparent as possible.

02:33Props are ongoing.

02:34As a matter of fact, they continue to be positive and constructive, I can tell you.

02:39So we've made good progress, and we have a long way to go.

02:42And so these things go on.

02:44As we've seen, sometimes they can change.

02:46But that's as much as I can give you.