MUSCAT, Oman (AP) — Iran and the United States held in-depth negotiations in Oman over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program 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.
A person close to Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, acknowledged that the meeting had started and later ended. The source spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door talks. Iranian state television also reported their conclusion.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told state television after the talks that the parties exchanged written points throughout the day in discussions that he described as “very serious and work-focused.”
“This time, the negotiations were much more serious than in the past, and we gradually entered into deeper and more detailed discussions,” he said. “We have moved somewhat away from broader, general discussions — though it is not the case that all disagreements have been resolved. Differences still exist both on major issues and on the details.”