U.S. and Iran Hold Nuclear Talks in Oman

The United States and Iran concluded preliminary talks Saturday on Iran’s nuclear program, with both sides describing the talks as constructive. The talks were held in Oman and were mediated by Badr Al-Busaidi, Oman’s foreign minister.

The talks were held indirectly over the course of 2.5 hours with Iran’s foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghachi, and Trump’s negotiator, Steve Witkoff, speaking face-to-face at the conclusion of talks.

The negotiators agreed to hold further talks next Saturday, which could lead to the opening of official face-to-face negotiations between the two countries. These would be the first official negotiations between the two nations since Trump withdrew from the JCPOA in 2018.

While some in the Trump administration, such as National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, have called for the complete dismantlement of Iran’s nuclear program, Witkoff has stated that the development of a nuclear weapon, rather than any uranium enrichment program, would constitute the U.S.’s redline in negotiations. 

Trump had given Iran a two-month window to accept a new nuclear deal. “I want them not to have a nuclear weapon. I want Iran to be a wonderful, great, happy country, but they can’t have a nuclear weapon,” the president said on Friday.