Tehran, May 16, IRNA � US Secretary of State John Kerry said Saturday his country is �committed to do all it can to finalize� a nuclear deal with Iran.

�We still have a long way to go. Many technical issues remain to be resolved. But we will continue to work hard as the June 30 deadline approaches,� Kerry said during a Saturday joint news conference with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing.

�Foreign Minister Wang and I have already spent time discussing some of that today, and I�m personally grateful for his personal commitment and hard work, the contributions they made � China made to Lausanne, to the discussions there and the negotiations, and now to the ongoing discussions,� he said.

�From the moment those talks began, China has been playing an important key role as a P5 member. Our nations remain closely aligned in this effort. We are united along with the rest of our P5+1 and EU partners. We all understand that unity has been the key to getting where we are today, and it will be the key to completing a good deal and seeing it fully implemented.�

The comments came a day after Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif voiced optimism over reaching a final deal with the P5+1 group of countries on Tehran�s nuclear program.

If the other side shows �seriousness� in the ongoing negotiations, �an agreement is very likely,� said Zarif in an interview with German magazine Spiegel published on Friday.

The senior Iranian diplomat also lashed out at the Saudi regime for considering the prospective nuclear deal between Tehran and the six world powers as a threat to its security.

There has recently been a 'flood of offensive comments from Saudi Arabia,� said Zarif, adding, 'Some people in the region seem to have panic' about Iran�s final nuclear deal.

Earlier Friday, representatives from Iran and the P5+1 group held a plenary session on Tehran�s nuclear program in the Austrian capital city of Vienna.

The session finalized four days of talks between the two sides. The next round of negotiations between Iran and the six world powers will reportedly be held next Wednesday.

Iran and the P5+1 countries � the US, Britain, France, Germany, China and Russia � have been negotiating to reach a comprehensive agreement over Iran�s civilian nuclear activities, and have set June 30 as the deadline for the conclusion of the deal.

The possible deal would see the removal of the sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic in return for enhanced transparency by Iran in its nuclear program.

The sides reached a mutual understanding on the parameters of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) � as the potential deal is called � in the Swiss city of Lausanne on April 2.

By IRNA