US, Iran hold new round of high-level nuclear talks

The United States and Iran were to hold a fresh round of technical and high-level nuclear negotiations in Oman on Saturday, after both sides reported progress in previous meetings.

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Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, leading Tehran’s delegation, arrived in Muscat on Friday ahead of the mediated talks, with US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff expected to head the American side.

The technical talks will come first, followed by the high-level negotiations.

Araghchi expressed “cautious optimism” about the process this week, saying that “if the sole demand by the US is for Iran to not possess nuclear weapons, this demand is achievable”.

But if Washington had “impractical or illogical demands, we will naturally encounter problems”, he added.

US President Donald Trump, in an interview published Friday by Time magazine, reiterated his threat of military action if a deal fell through, but also suggested he was optimistic about an agreement, saying he “would much prefer a deal than bombs being dropped”.

Michael Anton, the State Department’s head of policy planning, will lead Washington’s expert-level delegation, while deputy foreign ministers Kazem Gharibabadi and Majid Takht-Ravanchi will lead Tehran’s, according to Iran’s Tasnim news agency.

Iranian state television reported from Muscat that the meetings were expected to begin around 0830 GMT, without specifying which session it was referring to.