Clinton, Gates: Iran talks "positive" so far

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Monday that last week's nuclear talks with Iran had been a limited success. Appearing jointly on CNN, Clinton said the Geneva session had yielded three agreements that would allow the United States to assess Iran's seriousness about the negotiations. In the meantime, the US would continue to move toward additional sanctions if Iran does not back off from its nuclear program.

Clinton said the session in Geneva "was a worthwhile meeting," as the Iranians had agreed to inspections of all nuclear sites, to ship low-enriched uranium abroad for processing and to another round of talks later this month. However, she added: "This is not by any means a stopping point. There is much more to be done. We expect much more. On balance, what came out of the meeting in Geneva was positive."

Gates said there was a possibility that Iran could be persuaded that the weapons Iran is suspected of developing would be counterproductive in the long run. Asked if the Iranians were committed to resolving the dispute over their nuclear program, Clinton said: "We don't know yet. We don't know." Gates said he agreed. "I think the jury's out."