Tehran: Iran is still determined to reach an agreement with the United States, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Thursday.
Earlier on Thursday, Omani Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi said the fourth round of US-Iran talks scheduled for May 3 in Rome would be postponed due to logistical problems, and the date of the new round would be announced after agreement.
“Together with Omani and U.S. interlocutors, we have decided to postpone the 4th round of talks for logistical and technical reasons. On Iran’s part, there is no change in our determination to secure a negotiated solution. In fact, we are more determined than ever to achieve a just and balanced deal: guaranteeing an end to sanctions, and creating confidence that Iran’s nuclear program will forever remain peaceful while ensuring that Iranian rights are fully respected,” Araghchi wrote on X.
After the announcement of the postponement of the US-Iran talks, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told AFP on Thursday that a meeting on the nuclear issue between the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Iran, scheduled for May 2, will not take place.
The third round of indirect talks between Iran and the United States, with the participation of Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US Presidential Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, as well as technical groups from both sides, took place in Oman on April 26. After them, the Iranian minister said he was pleased with the progress of the talks, although the countries still disagree on both the details of the deal on the Iranian nuclear program and the general provisions.
The next round, as stated by the Omani Foreign Ministry, was to take place on May 3. At the same time, the Iranian side noted that the Omani authorities would determine both the venue and time of the Iran-US consultations. The Axios portal reported that the fourth round could take place in Rome.
In 2015, the UK, Germany, China, Russia, the United States, France and Iran concluded a nuclear deal that involved lifting sanctions in exchange for limiting the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program. The United States, during Donald Trump’s previous presidential term, withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in May 2018 and reimposed sanctions on the leadership in Tehran. In response, Iran announced a gradual reduction in its commitments under the agreement, abandoning, in particular, restrictions on nuclear research and the level of uranium enrichment.
