Photo: AI
On Saturday, high-level talks between Iran and the United States on Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear programme start in the Omani capital. The Iranian delegation is headed by Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, while Donald Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, is participating on the American side. This was reported by The Jerusalem Post.
The talks are taking place against the backdrop of escalating conflicts in the region – wars in Gaza and Lebanon, strikes between Iran and Israel, Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, and the fall of the Assad regime in Syria. Observers believe that a potential breakthrough in the talks could have prevented further escalation. However, the failure of the talks, according to analysts, will only increase the risk of a large-scale conflict in the Middle East.
US President Donald Trump has threatened a military response if Iran does not agree to the deal. Iran, for its part, demands only an indirect format of negotiations, while Washington insists on a direct dialogue. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has given Araqchi the authority to participate in the talks, but Tehran has ruled out discussing its missile programme.
Despite the official position that its nuclear programme is exclusively peaceful, the West suspects Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons. The United States has stated that it will not allow Iran to obtain a nuclear bomb and has reintroduced maximum pressure on Tehran.
Israel, an ally of the United States, has repeatedly declared its readiness for a military scenario in the event of a failure of diplomacy.
