Axios: Iran demands that Friday’s negotiations be moved from Istanbul to Oman and held only bilaterally with the United States
As the whole world awaits next Friday, when Iranian-US negotiations will be held in Istanbul, two informed sources revealed that Iran has demanded changes to the venue and format of negotiations with the United States scheduled for Friday, according to Axios.
The two sources also said that Iran has begun to retreat from the understandings reached in recent days, after several countries were invited to participate in the talks.
The new Iranian demands also include moving the negotiations from Istanbul to Oman, and holding them only in a bilateral format with the United States, instead of the presence of several Arab and Muslim countries as observers, according to Axios.
The demands come amid warnings that any disruption to the talks could push US President Donald Trump away from the diplomatic path toward the military option, at a time when he has already amassed a major force in the Middle East.
Iranian and US officials said on Monday that Iran and the United States would resume nuclear talks on Friday in Türkiye.
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff will meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Istanbul in an effort to revive diplomatic efforts over the long-running dispute over Iran’s nuclear program and dispel fears of a new regional war.
US President Donald Trump warned of dire consequences if a deal isn’t reached, pointing to the heading of huge US warships to Iran.
Trump had demanded three preconditions for the resumption of talks: not enriching uranium in Iran, imposing restrictions on its ballistic missile program, and ending its support for its allies and proxies in the region.
