ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran and the US are expected to resume negotiations on Tehran’s nuclear program next week after making “significant progress” on Thursday, Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Al-Busaidi, who is mediating the talks, announced.
Busaidi said in a post on X that Iranian and US negotiators will consult their leaders before holding another round of “technical level” talks in Vienna next week. He said the third round of discussions had ended without providing details on the progress made or unresolved issues.
The London-based opposition news site Iran International, citing an Iranian diplomatic source, reported that talks hit a snag earlier in the day over US demands that Tehran eliminate its nuclear enrichment and transfer uranium enriched to 60 percent to Washington.
Elias Hazrati, head of Iran’s Information Council, said on X after the talks that "Enrichment will continue in accordance with the needs and nothing will be taken out of Iran. Other options, including dilution, are on the table. Iran wants the sanctions to be lifted.”
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said last week the US had not requested zero enrichment during earlier rounds of negotiations, a key demand of US President Donald Trump who reiterated on Tuesday that he will “never” allow Iran to have a nuclear bomb.
The US has also sought to curb its ballistic missile program and support for armed groups across the region - conditions that Iran has rejected. Iran is seeking sanctions relief in exchange for curbing its nuclear program, saying it is used for peaceful purposes.
Araghchi, who is serving as Tehran’s lead negotiator, told reporters that “good progress was made” during the talks and that while disagreements remain “compared to the past, both sides are more serious about reaching a negotiated solution.”
UN watchdog, Vienna to review
He said the United Nations nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and Vienna experts will review “technical issues” on Monday. IAEA chief Mariano Grossi helped mediate the talks, he said. Iran consulted Grossi as Tehran draft expedited its draft proposal for the talks Thursday amid a growing threat of war by the US.
The US is represented by Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who have not publicly commented on negotiations.
While pressing for diplomacy ahead of the talks, Araghchi warned of a wider conflict as the US deployed warships and fighter jets in the biggest military builup in the Middle East in decades. Trump has repeatedly threatened to strike Iran if talks fail, while Iran has also used aggressive military tactics including blocking a major waterway used for international oil and trade during earlier talks.
"Since the Americans' bases are scattered through different places in the region, then unfortunately perhaps the whole region would be engaged and be involved, so it is a very terrible scenario," Araghchi told India Today on Wednesday.
Busaidi mediated the indirect discussions between Washington and Tehran in Geneva on Thursday as well as earlier talks in the Swiss capital and Oman in February.
Prior to resuming hours-long negotiations on Thursday evening, Busaidi said “creative and positive ideas” were exchanged.
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