US, Iran Resume Nuclear Program Talks Amid Signs of Progress

The US and Iran held a third round of negotiations aimed at reaching a new agreement on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program, amid signs of progress in the talks.

The delegations, led by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, returned to Muscat on Saturday, following Oman-mediated discussions in Rome last week.

Iran’s state broadcaster reported that separate discussions were also scheduled for Saturday, focused on “how the Americans intend to lift anti-Iranian sanctions” — a key issue for Tehran, for which it has called for firm guarantees.

In an interview published by Time magazine on Friday, President Donald Trump said Israel could decide for itself whether to strike Iranian nuclear facilities, but added that his administration could “make a deal without the attack,” noting he’d “much prefer a deal than bombs being dropped.”

Trump also said he’d be open to meeting Iran’s president or its Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, to whom he wrote last month urging negotiations on a new agreement.

On Wednesday, Araghchi said the talks were on the “right track” and that he was “cautiously optimistic” about progress. He added that a good deal could be reached if the US avoided “unrealistic and impossible demands.”

Trump has pledged that he won’t allow Iran to develop or obtain nuclear weapons, seeking to negotiate a new agreement to replace the 2015 deal he withdrew from during his first term in office.

Iran has insisted that its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes while maintaining that its ability to enrich uranium is non-negotiable.