MUSCAT, Oman (AP) 鈥� Iran and the United States held in-depth negotiations in Oman over on Saturday, ending the discussions with a promise for more talks and perhaps another high-level meeting next weekend.
The talks ran for several hours in Muscat, the mountain-wrapped capital of this sultanate on the eastern edge of the Arabian Peninsula.
told state television after the talks that the parties exchanged written points throughout the day in discussions that he described as 鈥渧ery serious and work-focused.鈥�
鈥淭his time, the negotiations were much more serious than in the past, and we gradually entered into deeper and more detailed discussions," he said. 鈥淲e have moved somewhat away from broader, general discussions 鈥� though it is not the case that all disagreements have been resolved. Differences still exist both on major issues and on the details.鈥�
A senior U.S. administration official said that the talks were 鈥減ositive and productive.鈥�
鈥淭his latest round of direct and indirect discussions lasted over four hours,鈥� the official said on condition of anonymity to discuss the talks. 鈥淭here is still much to do, but further progress was made on getting to a deal. We agreed to meet again soon, in Europe, and we thank our Omani partners for facilitating these talks.鈥�
Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, who has mediated the two previous round of talks in Muscat and Rome, offered a positive note at the end of Saturday's negotiations.
Iran and the U.S. 鈥渋dentified a shared aspiration to reach agreement based on mutual respect and enduring commitments,鈥� al-Busaidi posted on X. 鈥淐ore principles, objectives and technical concerns were all addressed. Talks will continue next week with a further high level meeting provisionally scheduled for May 3.鈥�
Araghchi arrived Friday in on the eve of the talks and , surrounded by television cameras and photojournalists. Witkoff was in Moscow on Friday to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and arrived on Saturday to Oman.
Meanwhile on Saturday, a major explosion just after the talks began, killing 14 people and injuring some 750 others. Authorities offered no immediate cause for the blast, which appeared to have been caused by a highly combustible material 鈥� though officials ruled out its oil and gas industry. The private security firm also linked to a shipment of a chemical ingredient used to make missile propellant to the port as well.
Nuclear talks come after decades of tensions
The talks seek to limit Iran鈥檚 nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some of the crushing economic sanctions the U.S. has imposed on the Islamic Republic .
U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to if a deal isn鈥檛 reached. Iranian officials increasingly warn that with their stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels.
Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers did limit Tehran's program. However, Trump unilaterally withdrew from it in 2018, setting in motion years of attacks and tensions. The wider Middle East also remains on edge over .
Trump, traveling to Rome for , again said that he hoped negotiations would lead to a new nuclear deal. However, he still held out the possibility of a military strike if they didn't.
鈥淭he Iran situation is coming out very well,鈥� Trump said on Air Force One. 鈥淲e've had a lot of talks with them and I think we're going to have a deal. I'd much rather have a deal than the other alternative. That would be good for humanity."
He added: 鈥淭here are some people that want to make a different kind of a deal 鈥� a much nastier deal 鈥� and I don鈥檛 want that to happen to Iran if we can avoid it.鈥�
Talks turn to experts
From the Iranian side, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-e Ravanchi headed up Tehran鈥檚 expert team, said Mohammad Golzari, an Iranian government official. Takht-e Ravanchi took part in the 2015 nuclear talks.
The U.S. technical team was led by Michael Anton, the director of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio鈥檚 policy planning staff. Anton doesn't have the nuclear policy experience of those who led Washington鈥檚 efforts in the 2015 talks.
Iran has insisted that keeping its enrichment is key. But Witkoff has muddied the issue by first suggesting in a television interview that Iran could enrich uranium at 3.67%, then later saying that all enrichment must stop. The demand that all enrichment stop also has been repeated by Rubio.
However, Iranians remain hopeful that the talks could be successful, as the Iranian rial has rebounded from historic lows during which it took more than 1 million rials to buy $1.
鈥淚t鈥檚 OK to negotiate, to make the nuclear program smaller or bigger, and reach a deal,鈥� Tehran resident Farzin Keivan said. 鈥淥f course we shouldn鈥檛 give them everything. After all, we鈥檝e suffered a lot for this program.鈥�
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Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran, and Matthew Lee in Washington, contributed to this report.
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Additional AP coverage of the nuclear landscape:
Jon Gambrell, The Associated Press
