Iran gives ground on monitoring Iran puts nuclear dispute "on the table" Negotiations over Iran's nuclear program are held between Iranian officials, the European Union and other international delegates in Geneva. PT0M50S http://www.smh.com.au/action/externalEmbeddedPlayer?id=d-2vnjs 620 349 October 17, 2013 - 7:34AM A timeline for compromises by Iran and reciprocal steps by world powers was the focus of Wednesday's second day of talks on defusing the decade-long conflict over Iran's nuclear program. Iran told diplomats from the US, China, France, Germany, Russia and Britain that it was prepared to take confidence-building measures by the second quarter of next year, Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said, without specifying the steps. He said Iran, holder of the world's fourth-largest proven oil reserves, would be willing to postpone recognition of its right to enrich uranium until a later stage in negotiations, under the plan proposed on Tuesday. The two-day meeting is the first since Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and US President Barack Obama spoke by phone last month. Optimism over the talks has helped push oil prices down. European Union spokesman Michael Mann said Tuesday's negotiations, unlike previous rounds, included "very detailed technical discussions." Iran's demand for acceptance of its right to enrich uranium on its own soil and a relaxation of the international sanctions that have squeezed its economy are the central issues in the talks. The top US negotiator in Geneva, Wendy Sherman, held a one-to-one meeting with Mr Araghchi, in a break from previous practice. Mr Araghchi said Iran was proposing the creation of a joint monitoring committee to ensure its promises were kept. While he described the meetings as positive, he objected to comments by Mr Mann that the "ball is in Iran's court." "It is regrettable that Mann called for Iran to take the first step," he said. The comments are contrary to the positive atmosphere of the meeting. Enriched uranium can be further processed to weapons-grade material. Iran says it is needed for civilian uses. The United Nations Security Council has demanded that Iran suspend all enrichment, stop construction of an additional plutonium-producing reactor and allow UN monitors wider access. Laicie Heeley, the director of Middle East and defence policy at the Centre for Arms Control and Nonproliferation in Washington, said "any real confidence-building measures" must include limits on Iran's uranium enrichment and its stockpile of medium-enriched uranium. Verification measures could include granting UN inspectors more access to Iran's nuclear facilities, she said. David Albright, of the Institute for Science and International Security in Washington, said it was progress that Iran "is talking about receiving any 'right to enrich' at the end of the process." In the past, "Iran's offers of confidence-building measures have been too minimal," he said.