Iran says it is seeking a “fair agreement” with Washington as the two rivals meet in Oman for nuclear talks.
The meeting between the two countries is the first since a brief attempt in 2021 under former President Joe Biden. Tehran, deeply suspicious of the US administration after President Donald Trump’s 2018 withdrawal from the original nuclear deal, has refused to negotiate directly with Washington.
However, the high-level meeting between Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi suggests there may be scope for detente.
“Our intention is to reach a fair and honourable agreement on an equal footing,” Araghchi said on Iranian state television on Saturday.
He said there was “a chance” of reaching a compromise “if the other side” adopts the same position.
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The delegations will start indirect negotiations after a meeting with Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi, according to Iranian news agency Tasnim.
The meeting comes as the US administration, which is thought to be roughly divided between anti-Iran hawks and those open to negotiation, has upped its rhetoric against Tehran.
In 2018, Trump withdrew from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) signed by his predecessor Barack Obama, which sought to limit Iran’s nuclear capabilities in exchange for sanctions relief, and imposed a “maximum pressure” sanctions regime on the country.
Last month, Trump said Iran would be bombed if it did not agree to a deal to curb its nuclear programme with the US.
“If they don’t make a deal, there will be bombing,” Trump told NBC News in an interview.
“It will be bombing the likes of which they have never seen before.”
Throughout March, the US had been amassing B-2 bombers, stealth aircraft used for precision strikes that can evade air defence systems, at Diego Garcia, an island roughly 700km south of the Maldives, home to a joint US-UK military base.
“Iran has, I think, taken pains across the years to signal that they won’t be threatened into anything”
– Ryan Costello, NIAC policy director
Analysts have said that the moves are a show of force to Iran.
The US is already conducting air strikes targeting the Houthis in Yemen, who receive weapons and training from Iran. The Houthi group, officially known as Ansar Allah, operates independently of Iran.
Since late 2023, the Houthis have been targeting shipping in the Red Sea and launched direct attacks on Israel – attacks they say are in solidarity with the Palestinians.
Iran had previously said it would not negotiate under the “maximum pressure” campaign imposed by the Trump administration. Meanwhile, the US has been levying new sanctions on Iran-affiliated entities nearly every week – if not more frequently.
However, Trump has said he was hesitant to sign the maximum pressure memo and has indicated he wants to strike his own deal – one with his name on it.
On the other hand, the Iranians “have an opportunity to get a mutually beneficial deal”, Ryan Costello, policy director for the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), told Middle East Eye this week.
“Iran has, I think, taken pains across the years to signal that they won’t be threatened into anything,” he added.
“But you look at the totality of what happened under [Trump’s first term], Iran didn’t actually have all that many great cards to play, and the Iranian economy took a lot of damage… So I think Iran probably is looking to preserve as much options as it possibly can.”
