VIENNA — An Iran nuclear agreement appeared likely within hours, diplomats said late Monday after a day in which American and Iranian negotiators appeared to be struggling to clear final obstacles and looking like they’d miss their fourth deadline in less than two weeks.
Three diplomats familiar with the talks said the announcement could come early Tuesday, possibly during predawn hours in Vienna. One said some of the top officials involved in the negotiation needed to leave Austria’s capital in the morning, thus hastening the declaration.
The diplomats weren’t authorized to speak publicly on the status of the negotiations and demanded anonymity. Their reports of a breakthrough capped a seesaw day of developments that started with high hopes for an accord. The mood soured as vexing questions including the future of a U.N. arms embargo on Iran proved troublesome.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest said the talks were “making genuine progress.”
