Iran, US hold 'positive' talks in Oman, agree to resume next week
hubnews1-Iran, US hold ‘positive’ talks in Oman, agree to resume next week April 12 (Reuters) – Iran and the United States said they had “positive” and “constructive” discussions in Oman on Saturday and would meet again next week in a dialogue designed to end Tehran’s expanding nuclear programme, with President Donald Trump warning of military action if there is no agreement.
“I believe we are very close to a negotiating basis and if we can seal this basis next week, we have gone far and will be able to initiate serious discussions based on that,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said in an interview with state television.
Araqchi explained that the talks – the first with Iran and a Trump presidency, his 2017-2021 first term – occurred in a “productive, calm and positive atmosphere”.
“Both sides have decided to continue the talks. probably next Saturday,” Araqchi said. “Iran and the U.S. side desire an agreement in the short term. We do not desire talks for (the sake of) talks.”
The White House termed the negotiations involving Trump’s Middle East envoy Steven Witkoff, U.S. Ambassador to Oman Ana Escrogima and Araqchi “very positive and constructive.”
“These matters are very complex, and Special Envoy Witkoff’s clear communication today was a step towards reaching a win-win result,” it said in a statement. “The sides agreed to have another meeting next Saturday.”
READ MORE:US and Iran to begin critical nuclear talks as Trump threatens war
Questioned on the negotiations, Trump informed journalists on Saturday evening: “I think they’re going OK.”
“Nothing is important until you get it done, so I don’t like to talk about it, but it’s going OK. The Iran situation is going very good, I think,” he stated on Air Force One.
Trump surprised on Monday to announce that Washington and Tehran would start negotiations in Oman, a Gulf country that has acted as a mediator between the West and the Islamic Republic previously. It has facilitated the release of various foreign nationals and dual citizens detained by Iran.
BOTH SIDES FAR APART:
Exchanges on Saturday were indirect and mediated by Oman, as Tehran had desired, instead of being face-to-face, as President Trump had insisted. Both sides had their respective rooms and shared messages through Oman’s foreign minister, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told reporters.
Araqchi declared that his delegation had a quick meeting with the U.S. counterpart led by Witkoff, following them out of negotiations.
“Following the conclusion of over 2-1/2 hours of inconclusive talks, the leaders of the Iranian and American delegations addressed each other briefly in front of the Omani foreign minister as they parted ways from the negotiations. The meeting was underpinned by our political propriety,” Araqchi maintained.
“The present emphasis of the negotiations will be to reduce tensions in the region, prisoner exchanges and limited deals to relax sanctions (on Iran) in return for managing Iran’s nuclear programme,” an Omani source said in a Reuters report.
Baghaei refuted this report but did not say what was untrue.
Trump, who in his initial term pulled the U.S. out of a 2015 big-power agreement with Tehran, has once again applied a hardline approach to a Middle Eastern power whose nuclear program Washington’s ally Israel considers an existential danger.
BOTH SIDES FAR APART::
Exchanges on Saturday were indirect and mediated by Oman, as Tehran had desired, instead of being face-to-face, as President Trump had insisted. Both sides had their respective rooms and shared messages through Oman’s foreign minister, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told reporters.
Araqchi declared that his delegation had a quick meeting with the U.S. counterpart led by Witkoff, following them out of negotiations.
“Following the conclusion of over 2-1/2 hours of inconclusive talks, the leaders of the Iranian and American delegations addressed each other briefly in front of the Omani foreign minister as they parted ways from the negotiations. The meeting was underpinned by our political propriety,” Araqchi maintained.
“The present emphasis of the negotiations will be to reduce tensions in the region, prisoner exchanges and limited deals to relax sanctions (on Iran) in return for managing Iran’s nuclear programme,” an Omani source said in a Reuters report.
Baghaei refuted this report but did not say what was untrue.
Trump, who in his initial term pulled the U.S. out of a 2015 big-power agreement with Tehran, has once again applied a hardline approach to a Middle Eastern power whose nuclear program Washington’s ally Israel considers an existential danger.
Meanwhile, Iran and its allied forces have been weakened by the military campaigns Israel has been conducting around the region, including airstrikes inside Iran, in its war against Hamas after Hamas, the Palestinian militant movement, struck Israel from Gaza in October 2023.
Russia’s ambassador to international organizations in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, described the remarks put out by both sides after the talks as “encouraging”.
Tehran went to the negotiations cautiously, doubtful that they would make a deal and distrustful of Trump, who has made successive threats to bomb Iran if it does not shut down its racing nuclear programme – which the West views as potentially a route towards atomic bombs.
Although both sides have hyped the possibility of some progress, they are still wide apart on a confrontation that has lasted over two decades. Iran has long insisted that it was not seeking the ability to make nuclear weapons, but Western nations and Israel suspect that it is working surreptitiously on developing the capability to construct an atomic bomb.
“This is a start. So it’s natural at this point for the two parties to lay out before each other their basic positions via the Omani intermediary,” Baghaei explained.
Indications of a breakthrough would serve to dampen tension in a Middle East on fire since 2023 with conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon, missile exchanges between Iran and Israel, Houthi attacks on Red Sea traffic and the fall of the Syrian government.
HIGH STAKES:
Yet defeat would heighten concerns of a broader conflagration in an area that supplies most of the world’s oil. Tehran warned neighboring countries that host U.S. bases they would suffer “severe consequences” if they were party to any U.S. military action against the OPEC member.
“There is potential for first-hand knowledge of the follow-up negotiations if the other side (U.S.) comes to the negotiation with a matching approach,” Araqchi said to Iranian television.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, whose final decision it is to decide on main state affairs, has assigned “full authority” for the talks to Araqchi, an Iranian official reported to Reuters.
Iran has dismissed talks about its defence mechanisms such as its ballistic missile programme.
READ MORE:donald trump supreme court,Sides With Wrongly Deported Migrant
Western countries claim Iran’s enrichment of uranium, a source of nuclear fuel, has proceeded much further than the needs of a civilian energy programme and has yielded quantities at a level of fissile purity approaching that needed in warheads.
Trump, who has resumed a “maximum pressure” campaign against Tehran since February, abandoned in 2018 a 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran and six world powers, including Russia and China, and re-imposed devastating sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Iran’s nuclear program has since surged ahead, including by producing uranium at 60% fissile purity, a technical advance from the levels required for a bomb.
Reporting by Parisa Hafezi in Dubai; Additional reporting by Jeff Mason aboard Air Force One; Writing by Parisa Hafezi and David Brunnstrom; Editing by Susan Fenton, Frances Kerry, Mark Heinrich, Don Durfee, Diane Craft and Marguerita Choy
FAQ:
Q: What was the nature of the recent talks between Iran and the US in Oman?
A: The discussions were described as “positive,” indicating constructive dialogue between the two countries.
Q: Where did the talks take place?
A: The negotiations were held in Oman, which has often served as a mediator in regional diplomacy.
Q: Have Iran and the US agreed to further discussions?
A: Yes, both sides have agreed to resume talks next week, suggesting continued diplomatic engagement.
Q: What is the significance of these talks?
A: The discussions could signal an effort to ease tensions or address key issues between Iran and the US, though specific details have not been disclosed.
Q: Are these talks part of a broader diplomatic process?
A: While not confirmed, the talks may be linked to ongoing efforts to address regional security concerns or nuclear negotiations.
Q: Where can I find updates on future discussions?
A: Further updates will likely be provided by official government statements or reputable news sources following next week’s meeting.
the hindu analysis in english,daily news analysis in english,positive pakistan,the hindu newspaper analysis in english,gravitas live with palki sharma upadhyay,talks / negotiations,iran us nuclear talks,gravitas with palki sharma,the hindu daily news analysis in english,taliban in afghan,world news,messianic world update,the hindu daily news analysis in hindi,world war 2 era photograph,talks,daily news in hindi today,the hindu analysis in hindi
Copyright hubnews1 Recorder, 2025
