Iranian and American negotiators have agreed to a second round of high-level talks on Tehran's nuclear programs next week, following a meeting on April 12 that lasted more than two hours and was described by both sides as "positive" and "constructive."
"The talks were very positive and constructive," the White House said after the meeting in the Omani capital, Muscat, REL writes.
She stated that the US special envoy, Steven Witkoff, emphasized "that he had received instructions from President [Donald] Trump to resolve the differences between our two nations through dialogue and diplomacy, if possible."
"These issues are very complex, and Special Envoy Witkoff's direct communication today was a step forward toward achieving a mutually beneficial outcome," the White House said.
She indicated that "the parties agreed to meet again" on April 19, A2 reports.
Later, Trump, answering reporters' questions about the talks, said: "I think they're going well."
"Nothing matters until it's successful, so I don't like to talk about it. But it's going well. The situation with Iran is going pretty well, I think," he told reporters aboard Air Force One.
The indirect meetings - brokered by Oman - are the first by officials from both countries on the issue in several years and come amid rising tensions and military threats from Washington.
Officials said the delegations were located in separate rooms and exchanged messages through Omani Foreign Minister Said Badr.
Oman, on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, has served as a mediator between Iran and Western countries, including during talks that led to the release of several foreign citizens and dual nationals held by Tehran.
The Iranian delegation was led by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, who also said the parties will meet again next weekend.
Although the parties did not meet face-to-face during the talks, Araqchi spoke briefly with Witkoff - in the presence of Oman's foreign minister - after the meeting, describing it as a "diplomatic courtesy."
Araqchi said the meetings took place in a "fruitful, calm and positive atmosphere."
Iran's Foreign Ministry said the talks were "constructive."
“[Witkoff’s] desire during the negotiations was for the general framework of the agreement to be established in the shortest possible time,” the top Iranian diplomat said after recounting the first direct interaction between the two countries since the Obama administration.
A few days before the meeting, President Donald Trump warned that, "if necessary," the United States would "certainly" use military force against Iran - and Israel is ready to play a leading role in this.
Iran's response has been defiant, suggesting that the risk is high for both countries and the wider region as the delegations meet in Oman.
How did this come about?
The talks mark another chapter in tense relations between Iran and the United States, characterized by cycles of diplomacy and confrontation.
The 2015 nuclear deal - officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - once offered hope for easing tensions, but Washington's withdrawal from the agreement in 2018 during Trump's first term prompted a series of sanctions and uranium enrichment by Tehran.
European powers attempted to salvage the JCPOA by launching a mechanism called the Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges (INSTEX), which aimed to facilitate dollar-free transactions with Iran, to avoid violating US sanctions and to prevent Iran from defaulting on its commitments.
In practice, only one transaction was carried out through this mechanism, and it was completely removed in 2023.
The Iranian economy, which benefited from the JCPOA, suffered a severe blow from Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign, significantly limiting Tehran's oil sales.
Shortly after Joe Biden's arrival in the White House in 2021, Iran and the United States began a series of indirect talks to revive the nuclear deal. A draft agreement was prepared by the European Union, as the coordinator of the JCPOA, but it was never signed.
The talks stalled in 2022 and have remained frozen until now.
What is the question?
Trump has been clear in his goal: Iran should never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon. But it remains unclear whether he wants to limit Iran's nuclear activity, or destroy it completely.
Iran is willing to provide guarantees that it does not intend to produce an atomic bomb, but it refuses to give up its nuclear program.
Despite attempts to show confidence and claims that it can get rid of US sanctions, Tehran urgently needs a deal.
The Iranian economy is in perhaps its worst shape ever, as its national currency continues to fall against the dollar. The purchasing power of its citizens continues to decline, while power outages have become a daily occurrence in summer and winter – despite Iran’s position as a global energy powerhouse.
For the United States, it is a priority to prevent Iran from getting its hands on nuclear weapons.
Iran is enriching uranium to a purity of 60 percent, which is considered close to the level needed for weapons development. It has also amassed enough to build several bombs, if it decided to do so.
Tehran insists its nuclear program is peaceful and has never pursued weapons-grade development. But with the Trump administration continuing to raise the possibility of military strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities, more and more Iranian officials have hinted that the country would build nuclear weapons if forced to.
According to estimates, Iran could enrich enough uranium for a single bomb in less than a week and enough for several bombs within a month.
Ahead of the Oman talks, Washington ratcheted up the pressure even further. On April 9, the US Treasury announced sanctions on five entities and one individual in Iran for their support of the Iranian nuclear program, including the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI).
Mohammed Ghaedi, a lecturer in the Department of Political Science at George Washington University, told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's Radio Farda that the new sanctions are likely to have little impact, as they target AEOI assets in the US, which are few.
He argued that these sanctions primarily serve to increase the US's negotiating power over Iran during talks.
On April 9, Trump repeated the warning that in the absence of a deal, the US would use military force to dismantle Tehran's nuclear program.
"Israel, of course, will be very involved in this. They will be the leaders of this effort," he said.
Ali Shamkhani, a senior adviser to Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, responded that continued threats of military confrontation would force Iran to expel UN inspectors and "transfer enriched uranium to safe places."/ REL (A2 Televizion)
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