US and Iran say ‘good’ start made in talks over nuclear programme | Iran nuclear programme
Indirect talks between Iran and the United States on the future of Iran’s nuclear program ended Friday with a broad agreement to maintain a diplomatic path, according to statements by Iranian and Omani countries; Other meetings will probably be held in the coming days.
A relieved Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, described the eight-hour meetings as a “good start” conducted in a good atmosphere. He added that the continuance of talks depended on consultations in Washington and Tehran, but said Iran had underlined that any dialogue required refraining from threats.
Donald Trump described the talks as “very good” and said another meeting would be held early next week. However, speaking on Air Force One, the US president also warned: “If they do not make a deal, the consequences will be very severe.”
The talks were the first between Iran and the United States since Washington and Israel launched devastating military strikes against Iran’s nuclear sites and political leaders last June.
After telling Iranian protesters in January that “help is on the way” during large-scale anti-government demonstrations, Trump has deployed a large fleet built around the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier group in the region in recent weeks.
Iran, which is experiencing intense civil unrest in which thousands of protesters have been killed in a bloody crackdown, has insisted that talks be limited to guarantees about the civilian purpose of its nuclear program and not cover human rights, missiles or support for proxy groups in the region, including Hamas, Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthi rebels. “Our talks are exclusively of a nuclear nature and we do not discuss any other issues with the Americans,” Araghchi said.
The indirect talks in Muscat were mediated by Omani foreign minister Badr al-Busaidi, and separate talks were held between the two sides. The US team was led by Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and the US president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.
U.S. Centcom commander Adm. Brad Cooper was also there and underlined how Trump has made U.S. military influence a central part of his diplomatic arsenal.
Al-Busaidi said in a statement: “These consultations focused on creating favorable conditions for the resumption of diplomatic and technical negotiations and emphasized the importance of these talks and the determination of the parties to succeed in achieving lasting security and stability.”
Trust between Iran and the United States was minimal, with the United States backing Israeli military strikes against Iran just days before the two sides met for a sixth round of talks last June.
“It is not easy to restart the dialogue process after eight turbulent months of war,” Araghchi said. “The deep distrust that builds on past mistrust is a serious challenge. First of all, we need to overcome the prevailing atmosphere of distrust… If this trend continues, I think we can reach a good framework for agreement.”
Washington wanted to expand the talks to include Iran’s ballistic missiles, support for armed groups in the region and, as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday, “the treatment of its own people.” But after days of speculation, Iranian negotiators were satisfied that only the nuclear dispute would be discussed, at least initially.
Iran wants assurances that the United States is not using the negotiations as a smokescreen to impose regime change.
Before the talks, Tehran said that the United States had to withdraw its request for the talks to be held in Türkiye with the participation of the foreign ministers of Qatar, Türkiye, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
Iran says its right to enrich uranium on Iranian soil – a right granted to it in the nuclear deal negotiated by Barack Obama and repealed in 2015 – is non-negotiable. The best source of compromise is if Iran agrees to suspend its uranium enrichment plans for a certain period of time and create a regional consortium to enrich uranium and bring the region closer to an integrated civil nuclear program.
Iran also wants sanctions relief in exchange for a new inspection regime at its nuclear facilities. The value of the rial against the dollar has halved since Israeli attacks in June, and Iran’s falling standard of living, exacerbated by food inflation approaching 100%, sparked demonstrations that broke out in late December.
Meanwhile, the talks were being held amid Trump’s repeated warnings that he would strike Iran militarily from the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier group if no progress was made. The United States is increasing its naval presence in the region after the Iranian government cracked down on protests and increased tensions between Washington and Tehran.
Tehran has said it would not hesitate to attack Israel or US military bases in the region if attacked. Washington held back from attacking Iran last month because Israel and the US military felt they were not fully prepared to confront possible Iranian retaliation.
