Britain calls Geneva deal on Iran 'encouraging'

British Foreign Secretary William Hague has hailed the agreement reached between the P5+1 group and Iran on the latter's nuclear programme Sunday as "important and encouraging first stage agreement".

After days of intensive negotiations, Iran and the six countries -- Britain, France, Russia, China, the US and Germany (P5+1) have reached a first-step agreement on its nuclear programme, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton announced in the morning, Xinhua reported.

Hague tweeted that the agreement with Iran is good for the whole world, including Middle Eastern countries and the people of Iran themselves.

"This agreement shows it is possible to work with Iran, and through diplomacy address intractable problems," the tweet said.

"Negotiations were painstaking. Tomorrow hard work begins of implementing and building on the agreement," he said.

US President Barack Obama hailed the deal as "an important first step toward a comprehensive solution" to Iran's nuclear programme and "the most significant and tangible progress" ever made since he took office.

The president acknowledged Iran's right to peaceful use of nuclear energy as he said "we approach these negotiations with a basic understanding: Iran, like any nation, should be able to access peaceful nuclear energy".