Trump praises very positive negotiations with Iran

US President Donald Trump on Friday hailed very good talks with Iran following a round of indirect negotiations between the United States and Iran in Oman, stressing that the two sides would meet again “early next week”.

“We also had very good conversations on Iran, and it seems that Iran is very interested in making a deal,” Trump told reporters aboard the presidential plane Air Force One as he flew to Mar-a-Lago, Florida, for the weekend.

For his part, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Saturday that no date had yet been set for the second round of talks with the United States, but that the two sides agreed that they should be held soon.

“At the moment, no specific date has been set for the second round of negotiations, but we and Washington believe that these negotiations should be held soon,” Araghchi said, according to excerpts published on his official Telegram channel.

He stressed that his country will target US bases in the region if Washington attacks Iranian territory.

“There is no room to attack American soil if Washington attacks us, but we will attack their bases in the region,” he said.

Araghchi, who headed his country’s delegation to the talks, also praised the very positive atmosphere in a statement to Iranian state television, adding that the two sides agreed to continue negotiations.

“The talks focus exclusively on the nuclear issue, and we aren’t discussing any other file with the Americans,” he stressed, while stressing the need for the United States to also address its ballistic missile program and its support for armed groups in the region.

Iran’s foreign minister urged Washington to stop threats against his country to allow the talks to continue, explaining that negotiators would decide ways to move forward after consultations with the two capitals.

Shortly after the end of the negotiation round, Washington announced new sanctions on Iran’s oil sector, which included 15 entities, two individuals and 14 ships.

The talks were the first since the United States in June launched strikes on key sites of Iran’s nuclear program during Israel’s 12-day war on Iran.

Iranian state television reported that it was taking place indirectly, while Oman’s Foreign Ministry published photos showing Minister Badr bin Hamad al Busaidi meeting the two delegations separately.

According to Axios website quoting two sources as saying that direct discussions took place between Abbas Araghchi, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Oman.

“We had very serious talks between Iran and the United States in Muscat today,” the Omani foreign minister said on X, adding that it was “useful to clarify the Iranian and American positions and identify areas of possible progress”.

Araghchi stressed that his country is ready to defend its sovereignty and national security in the face of any extravagant demands or adventurism by the United States.

“Iran enters diplomacy with its eyes open and a strong memory of the past year… We’re entering the talks in good faith and firmly upholding our rights”.

In Washington, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said Thursday evening that the US delegation would discuss with Iran “zero nuclear capabilities,” and warned that Trump had “many options at his disposal other than diplomacy,” noting that he is the commander-in-chief of the most powerful military in history.

The talks are taking place as Washington builds up its military capabilities in the Middle East, with the Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier and its naval strike group deployed to the region, while Iran has vowed to target US bases in the region if attacked.

According to a video posted by the official Oman News Agency showed that the commander of the US Central Command (CENTCOM), which is responsible for operations in the Middle East, Admiral Brad Cooper, joined his country’s delegation.

Iran asserts that it wants to discuss the nuclear issue exclusively in order to reach the lifting of sanctions, rejecting any negotiations over its missile program or its support for armed organizations hostile to Israel in the region, most notably the Lebanese Hezbollah, the Palestinian Hamas movement, and the Houthis in Yemen.

On the other hand, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was unequivocal, stressing that for the talks to lead to tangible results, they must include specific items, including the range of their ballistic missiles, their support for terrorist organizations in the region, their nuclear program, and their treatment of their own people.

“Tehran continues to show intransigence toward meeting US demands, which reduces the likelihood that Iran and the US will reach a diplomatic solution,” the US-based Institute for the Study of War said.

Iranians in Tehran hope the talks will at least remove the specter of war.