Reporting by Betul Yuruk & Writing by Feyza Susal
LAUSANNE, Switzerland
Beau Rivage Palace, the hotel in the Swiss city of Lausanne where the Lausanne Peace Treaty marking off the borders of modern Turkey was inked back in 1923, is now the scene of a fresh round of negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 world powers.
Apart from its costly watches and famous chocolates, Switzerland is also known as a mediator country located in the heart of Europe.
It has hosted numerous diplomatic talks throughout history, including the 1936 Montreux Convention on the Regime of the Turkish Straits, the Treaty of Lausanne, the Geneva talks on the Syrian crisis and now, the Iran nuclear talks.
Iran and the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council -- the U.S., the U.K., China, France and Russia -- plus Germany have been negotiating at Beau Rivage Palace Hotel over Tehran's nuclear program to reach a deal.
Alessandra de Raemy, public relations and communication manager at Beau Rivage Palace Hotel, told The Anadolu Agency that Switzerland is performing its mediation duty as a neutral country.
"It is a part of our history. The 1923 Lausanne Treaty was signed here, which turned the hotel into a symbol of peace," she said.
Eighty-year-old Bruni Fivaz, who spent more than half of his life in Lausanne, said crises need to be resolved and it is important for Switzerland to contribute to world peace, even though it is a small country in the midst of the European continent.
"The crises and incidents in the world must be solved through dialogue and it is good for Switzerland to host these talks," said 59-year-old Cherie Rita, another Lausanne resident.
Locals hope that Swiss diplomacy -- which is regarded to have failed in the Geneva II talks on Syria -- could have better luck with the Iran-West talks on Tehran's nuclear program.
The P5+1 group believes Iran is developing nuclear weapons and wants its nuclear program curbed in return for the lifting of sanctions, while Tehran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful civilian purposes.
The deal sought by the six-nation group would have Iran accept limits on its uranium enrichment capacity and allow International Atomic Energy Agency inspections without interference of any kind.
Iran and the six-nation group are seeking to reach a permanent deal by June 30.
