Iran Sees Implementation Of Nuclear Deal Starting By Early Jan

[Ron Burgundy]

By Fredrik Dahl VIENNA (Reuters) - The implementation of a landmark nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers is expected to begin in late December or early January, Tehran's envoy to the U.N. atomic agency said on Friday. Under the November 24 interim accord, Iran will curb its nuclear program in exchange for limited sanctions relief, seen as a first step towards resolving a decade-old dispute that has stirred fears of a new Middle East war. Asked when the six-month period covered by the agreement would start, Ambassador Reza Najafi told reporters: "We expect that either the end of December or beginning of January we should start implementing the measures agreed by both sides." The deal between Iran and the United States, France, Germany, Britain, China and Russia is designed to halt any further advances in Iran's nuclear campaign and to buy time for negotiations on a final settlement. After years of confrontation, it has underlined a thaw in relations between Iran and the West after the election in June of a relative moderate, Hassan Rouhani, as Iranian president on a pledge to end Tehran's isolation and win relief from sanctions that have battered the oil producer's economy.

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