US-Iran talks conclude with ‘significant progress’ and ‘technical discussions’ to take place next week, Oman says – Middle East live | Iran

Iran said the next round of nuclear talks with the U.S. is expected in less than a week.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araqchi described it the most serious exchanges with Washington, saying Tehran clearly laid out its demand for lifting sanctions and the process for relief.

Both sides needed to consult with their respective capitals, Araqchi said on Thursday to state TV.

Araqchi added the talks will resume in Vienna from Monday.

Talks between US and Iran in Geneva over the future of Tehran’s nuclear program ended on Thursday with the mediators Oman claiming “significant progress” had been made, and predicting the talks will reconvene at a technical level next week in Vienna.

But there was no immediate evidence to back suggestions that the two sides had drawn closer together on the fundamental issues of Iran’s right to enrich uranium and the future of its highly enriched uranium stocks still in Iran.

The talks in Geneva were held in two parts with reports that the US team led by Steve Witkoff, the US special envoy, had been disappointed by the proposals put forward by Iran.

The brevity of the second session of the talks also appeared ominous.

Iranian officials rounded on reports issued during the talks by US media suggesting Iran was going to be required to end enrichment and allow its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to leave Iran.

Here is the full post from the Omani foreign minister’s account on X:

We have finished the day after significant progress in the negotiation between the United States and Iran. We will resume soon after consultation in the respective capitals. Discussions on a technical level will take place next week in Vienna. I am grateful to all concerned for their efforts: the negotiators, the IAEA, and our hosts the Swiss government.

We’re now seeing lines on the news wires that the talks have finished for the day, with the Omani foreign minister saying there was “significant progress” in the negotiations between the US and Iran.

Per Reuters, Sayyid Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi – who was mediating the talks – said “discussions on a technical level” would take place next week in Vienna. Talks would resume soon after consultations in the respective capitals, he said.

We’ll bring you more on this as we get it.

CNN is also reporting that the fresh round of indirect US-Iran talks has begun in Geneva after a few hours’ break, citing Iran’s state-run broadcaster.

Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting said the “second round of the third phase” of the talks had started, after both delegations arrived back at the Omani embassy.

Earlier, we reported that the convoy carrying US diplomats in Geneva had arrived back at the location, shortly after the convoy carrying Iranian diplomats.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi and US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have resumed indirect talks mediated by Oman, Reuters reports citing Iranian state media, after having adjourned their earlier session.

A convoy carrying US diplomats in Geneva has arrived at the location of indirect talks with Iran over its nuclear program.

The convoy pulled into the compound on the shores of Lake Geneva. A convoy carrying Iranian diplomats arrived earlier.

The two sides had taken a several-hour break in the talks. The US side went to a meeting with Ukrainian officials during that time.

And while negotiations continue, the build-up of US firepower around Iran goes on apace.

Earlier today, the USS Gerald R Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, left the US naval base of Souda Bay on Crete for the Middle East – adding to what has become the biggest military presence in the region in decades.

The nuclear-powered carrier, the largest warship ever constructed, has spent four days at the deep-water port refuelling and resupplying.

The vessel, which is expected to reach the shores of Israel within 24 hours, will join the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier and other ships that arrived in the Middle East last month.

“It’s hard to see how such a powerful military presence can simply be de-escalated without very significant progress in today’s talks,” said one well-placed diplomat.

Just a reminder that, according to the Iranian foreign ministry, the talks in Geneva will resume shortly at 5.30pm local time (4.30pm GMT).

Stay with us for any news lines that may emerge in the coming hours…

Satellite photos shot Tuesday and Wednesday by Planet Labs PBC and analyzed by the Associated Press appeared to show that American vessels typically docked in Bahrain, the home of the US Navy’s 5th Fleet, were all out at sea.

Before Iran’s attack on a US base in Qatar during the closing days of the war last June, the 5th Fleet similarly scattered its ships at sea to protect against a potential attack.

If the talks fail, uncertainty hangs over the timing of any possible US attack.

If the aim of potential military action is to pressure Iran to make concessions in nuclear negotiations, it’s not clear whether limited strikes would work.

AP reports:

If the goal is to remove Iran’s leaders, that will likely commit the US to a larger, longer military campaign. There has been no public sign of planning for what would come next, including the potential for chaos in Iran.

There is also uncertainty about what any military action could mean for the wider region. Tehran could retaliate against the American-allied nations of the Persian Gulf or Israel.

Oil prices have risen in recent days in part due to those concerns, with benchmark Brent crude now around $70 a barrel.

Iran in the last round of talks said it briefly halted traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of all traded oil passes.