U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner and Oman's Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi during a meeting in Muscat on Friday.Supplied/AFP/Getty Images
Iran’s top diplomat said on Friday that nuclear talks with the U.S. mediated by Oman were off to a “good start” and set to continue, in remarks that could help allay concern that failure to reach a deal might nudge the Middle East closer to war.
But Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said after the talks in the Omani capital Muscat, which involved him, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, that “any dialogue requires refraining from threats and pressure. (Tehran) only discusses its nuclear issue ... We do not discuss any other issue with the U.S.”
While both sides have indicated readiness to revive diplomacy over Tehran’s long-running nuclear dispute with the West, Washington wanted to expand the talks to cover Iran’s ballistic missiles, support for armed groups around the region and “treatment of their own people,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday.
U.S. shoots down Iranian drone that approached an aircraft carrier, military says
A regional diplomat briefed by Tehran on the talks told Reuters Iran insisted on its “right to enrich uranium” during the negotiations with the U.S., adding that Tehran’s missile capabilities were not raised in the discussions.
Trump on Friday ratcheted up the pressure on Iran with an executive order imposing a 25% tariff on imports from any country that “directly or indirectly” purchases goods from Iran, following through on a threat he made last month.
The White House has said the measure is intended to deter third countries from maintaining commercial ties with Iran, particularly in energy, metals and petrochemicals, sectors that remain key sources of revenue for the Iranian government.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi meets with Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi in Muscat, Oman on Friday.Iranian Foreign Ministry/WANA/Reuters
While Iran ruled out Washington’s demand for no enrichment on its soil, the diplomat who asked not to be named said Tehran showed openness to discussing the “level and purity” of enrichment or alternative arrangements, including a potential regional consortium.
In return, Iran had several demands, such as “efficient and immediate sanctions relief, including banking and oil, and the moving of U.S. military assets away from Iran.”
Iranian officials have repeatedly ruled out putting Iran’s missiles - one of the largest such arsenals in the Middle East - up for discussion, and have said Tehran wants recognition of its right to enrich uranium.
For Washington, carrying out enrichment - a possible pathway to nuclear bombs - inside Iran is a red line. Tehran has long denied any intent to weaponize nuclear fuel production.
However, the diplomat said, Tehran believed the U.S. negotiators “seemed to understand Iran’s stance on the enrichment.”
Araqchi earlier told Iran’s state TV that “It was a good start to the negotiations.”
“And there is an understanding on continuing the talks. Co-ordination on how to proceed will be decided in the capitals,” Araqchi said. “If this process continues, I think we will reach a good framework for an understanding.”
Iran and the United States held indirect talks in Oman on Friday, negotiations that appeared to return to the starting point on how to approach discussions over Tehran’s nuclear program. But for the first time, America brought its top military commander in the Middle East to the table.
The Associated Press
Mediator Badr al-Busaidi, Oman’s foreign minister, said the talks had been “very serious,” with results to be considered carefully in Tehran and Washington. The goal was to reconvene in due course.
Despite the talks, the United States announced on Friday it was sanctioning 15 entities and 14 shadow-fleet vessels connected to illicit trade in Iranian petroleum, petroleum products and petrochemical products, the latest U.S. economic measures targeting Tehran and trade with it.
A huge national flag hangs above shops in Tehran.-/AFP/Getty Images
Iran’s leadership remains deeply worried that Trump may carry out his threats to strike Iran after a U.S. naval buildup in seas in the region.
Last June, the U.S. struck Iranian nuclear targets, joining in the final stages of a 12-day Israeli bombing campaign. Tehran has since said it has halted uranium enrichment activity.
The naval buildup, which Trump has called a massive “armada,” has followed a bloody government crackdown on nationwide protests in Iran last month, heightening tensions between Washington and Tehran.
Trump has said “bad things” will probably happen if a deal cannot be reached, increasing pressure on the Islamic Republic in a standoff that has led to mutual threats of air strikes.
Fears of conflict
World powers and regional states fear a breakdown in the negotiations would ignite another conflict between the U.S. and Iran that could spill over to the rest of the oil-producing region.
Iran has vowed a harsh response to any strike and has cautioned neighbouring Gulf Arab countries that host U.S. bases that they could be in the firing line if they were involved in an attack.
In a show of defiance, Iranian state TV said hours before the talks that “one of the country’s most advanced long-range ballistic missiles, the Khorramshahr-4,” had been deployed at one of the Revolutionary Guard’s underground “missile cities.”
However, Tehran is willing to show “flexibility” on uranium enrichment, including by handing over 400 kg of highly enriched uranium - refined closer to bomb-grade - and accepting zero enrichment under a consortium arrangement as a solution, Iranian officials told Reuters last week.
Iran also demands the lifting of U.S. sanctions, reimposed since 2018 when Trump, during his first term in the White House, ditched Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with six world powers.
The U.S., its European allies and Israel accuse Tehran of seeking nuclear weapons, but Tehran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.