Washington, October 02, SPA -- U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday said that the meeting between the permanent five members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany (P5+1) with the Iranians in Geneva yesterday on their nuclear program was a good initial step, but there is much more work to do ahead. The meetings, Obama said, came after several months of “diplomatic efforts” with Iran, stemming from his pre-election promise to engage with the country that is largely isolated. Though the meeting has been touted as a landmark by many, Obama said that “today’s meeting is a constructive beginning,” but that it must be followed by concrete action from Iran. While “the result is clear the P5+1 is united,” on the nuclear issue, Obama said that it is still up to the Iranians to “demonstrate through concrete steps” that it is committed to meeting its international obligations. Iran must commitment to transparency, and take concrete steps to build confidence that its nuclear program will be used for peaceful purposes. Sending a stern warning, Obama said the United States and its allies are awaiting “swift action” from Tehran, and will not be “talking for the sake of talking.”“Talk is no substitute for action,” the U.S. President said, adding that while he knows that “hard work lies ahead,” the United States’ “patience is not unlimited.” The United States will not shy away from implementing greater sanctions on Tehran if indeed, they do not follow through with their commitments, he said. But, he made sure to say that these harsh words are not meant to focus on punishing Iran, but rather, it is “about [keeping in tact] the global non proliferation regime.”U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also on Thursday said that the talks “opened the door” to potential progress on clarifying Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Speaking to reporters after the talks, Clinton said “there were a number of issues raised, put on the table, and now we have to wait and see how quickly — and whether — Iran responds.”“It was a productive day, but the proof of that has not yet come to fruition, so we’ll wait and continue to press our point of view and see what Iran decides to do,” Clinton said, speaking from Washington, DC.--SPA www.spa.gov.sa/705105