GENEVA – The United States and Iran are set to engage in another round of discussions concerning Tehran’s nuclear ambitions, as announced by the Swiss Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday. This dialogue is scheduled to take place next week.
Having facilitated the initial indirect negotiations on February 6, Oman will see the talks move to Geneva. The Swiss ministry did not specify the exact dates for these discussions.
Following the first meeting, U.S. President Donald Trump issued a stern caution to Tehran, suggesting that failing to reach an accord with his administration could lead to “very traumatic” consequences.
Previously, similar negotiations faltered last June when tensions escalated into a 12-day conflict initiated by Israel against Iran, which included U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
President Trump has consistently warned of potential military action to pressure Iran into limiting its nuclear activities. In response, Iran has pledged to retaliate if attacked. Additionally, Trump has issued threats over Iran’s severe measures against recent widespread protests.
Meanwhile, Gulf Arab states have expressed concerns that any military confrontation could ignite a broader regional conflict.
Trump said Friday the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest aircraft carrier, was being sent from the Caribbean to the Mideast to join other military assets the U.S. has built up in the region. He also said a change in power in Iran “would be the best thing that could happen.”
The indirect talks on Feb. 6 were between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff. The top military commander in the Middle East was also present for the first time.
The Trump administration has maintained that Iran can have no uranium enrichment under any deal. Tehran says it won’t agree to that.
Iran has insisted its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. However, its officials increasingly threaten to pursue a nuclear weapon. Before the June war, Iran had been enriching uranium up to 60% purity, a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said his nation is “ready for any kind of verification.” However, the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, has been unable for months to inspect and verify Iran’s nuclear stockpile.
Trump has suggested in recent weeks that his top priority is for Iran to scale back its nuclear program. Iran has said it wants talks to focus solely on the nuclear program.
But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who met with Trump in Washington this week, has pressed for any deal to include steps to neutralize Iran’s ballistic missile program and end its funding for proxy groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
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