Iran's national flags are seen on a square in Tehran
Iran's national flags are seen on a square in Tehran February 10, 2012, a day before the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl

The Nov. 24 deadline for striking a nuclear deal with Iran may be extended further. Both Germany and the United States said there were still some "big gaps" to be closed before the deal got finalised.

Six of the most "powerful" nations in the world want Iran to restrict its controversial nuclear programme so that the United Nations sanctions could be lifted. The United Kingdom, Russia, China, France, the United States plus Germany (typically called as P5+1) are presently trying to negotiate with Iran in Vienna. Iran, on the other hand, does not admit that it has any such programme to build nuclear weapons. According to the Middle Eastern country, the "peaceful" programme is for energy purposes, BBC reported.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had four meetings with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in three days. The latest was on Saturday, after which Kerry said that there were still "big gaps" to close even though officials were working hard and making "careful progress." German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, on the other hand, said that progress was possible only if Iran would want it. Meanwhile, a senior U.S. State Department official told CNN that the deadline for striking the deal could be extended. He said that an extension was one of the options that officials were discussing to consider.

U.S. President Barack Obama, too, did not reject the idea of extending the deadline. He said in an interview broadcast Sunday morning on ABC's "This Week" that it would depend on what happened over the course of the weekend. He was asked if Congress would approve an agreement with Iran. He replied that he was confident that he could convince Congress if Iran decided to come up with a "verifiable" deal and did not have "breakout capacity." In addition, he said that the he could convince even the "American people" that a nuclear deal with Iran would be the "right thing to do."

Here are a couple of things that may break the deal:

Reducing sanctions: Even though Iran wants to have the sanctions lifted with an immediate effect, the West wants to make sure that the Middle Eastern country first abides by what it commits.

Nuclear weapons: Iran could not explain why it went for explosives tests and similar activities that were linked to building nuclear weapons. It has also not allowed entry of international inspectors to the Parchin military site.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@ibtimes.com.au