Iran has blamed bickering between the U.S. and its negotiating partners for the missed Thursday deadline at the nuclear talks in Vienna, as officials in the Austrian capital checked their optimism over hopes for a final deal.

Late Thursday night a senior Iranian official said the U.S. and other nations involved in the talks had changed their positions, backtracking from earlier agreements and bickering amongst themselves over how and when to lift certain sanctions against Tehran.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said it was unclear whether these differences were just a small glitch or a major setback in the drawn-out talks, but they were the reason the second deadline had been missed.

bbabo.Net