Zarif and Kerry held a two-hour meeting in the Austrian capital on Sunday on the sidelines of nuclear talks between Iran and six major world powers aimed at drawing up the draft text of a comprehensive agreement over Iran’s nuclear energy program.

The top US diplomat was accompanied by US Deputy Secretary of State William Burns and Under-Secretary of State for Political Affairs Wendy Sherman, who is the country's representative in the nuclear talks.

The Iranian and US foreign ministers had already held a one-on-one meeting in Vienna on Sunday.

Kerry and the foreign ministers of France, Germany and Britain arrived in Vienna on Sunday as part of efforts to help seal a comprehensive nuclear deal with Iran.

Zarif on Sunday held separate talks with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, British Foreign Secretary William Hague, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius and Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Li Baodong.

Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – Russia, China, France, Britain and the US – plus Germany kicked off their sixth round of talks this year in Vienna on July 3.

Iran and the six countries have been discussing ways to sort out their differences and achieve a final deal that would end the decade-old dispute over Iran’s nuclear energy program.

The two sides sealed an interim deal in Geneva, Switzerland, on November 23, 2013. The deal came into force in January and expires on July 20, but can be extended depending on the agreement of all parties involved.

NJF/NJF