Iran says it has showed flexibility and seriousness in talks with the West over its nuclear policy, now it is time to see initiatives and flexibility in return.

In an interview with Euronews on Tuesday, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said the agreement could be reached in a matter of hours, but also warned again that some of Iran’s “red lines” remained, reiterating that “We’ve never been so close to such a deal”.

When asked to explain about Iran’s “seriousness and initiatives” at the Vienna Talks, Amir-Abdollahian, said, “we need to make sure there’s harmony between how we’re negotiating in Vienna and the realistic approach of Dr. Raisi’s government”.

“We do not believe that Iran is an isolated country. Unilateral and unlawful US sanctions have led to some problems for us. Inaction since 2015, especially from three European countries…has caused some problems for Iran. But despite all their efforts…the isolation of Iran hasn’t happened”, he added.

Commenting on the issue of a prisoner swap with the West, he described the dual-nationals held by Iran as spies, saying, “We’ve announced that we’re ready, either outside the Vienna talks or alongside them, to exchange prisoners when the other side is ready. We consider this to be a 100% humanitarian issue. We don’t see any necessity to link this humanitarian dossier to the Vienna Talks.”

Iran has arrested several Westerners and dual citizens of Iranian descent on trumped-up charges, described by international human rights organizations as hostage taking.