Referring to the resumption of nuclear talks between Iran and the Group 5+1 in 2015 which began with a bilateral meeting by Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and US Secretary of State John Kerry in Geneva today, Afkham said using the "ineffective instrument of sanctions by the US Congress would be a mistake". 

"The inefficiency of those measures has been proven to the international community. The Iranian nation can draw its prospects based on its own plans," said the spokeswoman.  

Iran believes Russia has the “effective weight” to play a more active role in the nuclear talks in a way that would lead to a fair and reasonable deal, Afkham stressed.