Iran Nuclear | Deal Washington, Tehran resume nuke talks with GOP letter hanging over them 

U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran Ali Akbar Salehi, from left to right, pose for a photograph before resuming talks over Iran’s nuclear program in Lausanne

Top U.S. and Iranian diplomats returned to talks yesterday, seeking to resolve differences blocking a deal that would curtail Iran’s nuclear program and ease sanctions on the country. Among the issues they’re now contending with is a Republican letter warning that any deal could collapse the day President Barack Obama leaves office.
The discussions between Secretary of State John Kerry and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif came after a senior U.S. official described Iranian diplomats twice confronting their American counterparts about last week’s open letter to Iran’s leaders written by freshman Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and signed by 46 other GOP senators.
The letter came up in talks Sunday between senior U.S. and Iranian negotiators, the official said, and the Iranians raised it again in negotiations Monday led by Kerry and Zarif.
The official described the Republican intervention as a new challenge for negotiators facing an end-of-month deadline for a framework accord. Zarif confirmed that it was on his mind, telling Iranian state media: “It is necessary that the stance of the U.S. administration be defined about this move.” The U.S. official wasn’t authorized to speak publicly on the matter and briefed reporters on condition of anonymity.
Kerry and Zarif met for nearly five hours in the Swiss city of Lausanne Monday, before the Iranians departed for Brussels for talks with European negotiators.
There, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said “we are entering a crucial time, a crucial two weeks.” German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said after “more than 10 years of negotiations, we should seize this opportunity.” British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said all sides were committed to trying. China, France and Russia are also involved in the negotiations. Bradley Klapper and Geeorge Jahn, Lausanne AP