US-Iran Talks

President Donald Trump said in an interview with NBC that talks between Washington and Tehran are set to take place in Oman on Friday, despite earlier reports that the talks had collapsed.

Several allies pushed to keep the talks going after the US demanded discussions on Iran’s ballistic missile program, a demand Tehran rejected.

The talks scheduled for Friday were postponed, after Tehran firmly rejected a US demand to discuss Iran’s ballistic missile program.

A senior American diplomatic source says Washington is demanding guarantees from Tehran on uranium enrichment, the transfer of existing stockpiles and Iran’s ballistic missile program. According to the source, without agreements on these issues, no meeting between the sides will take place.

According to multiple reports, Tehran is backtracking from understandings reached in recent days, while an intense internal power struggles within the Iranian leadership is taking form.

Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran was preparing for talks with Washington amid reports that Tehran is prepared to “sacrifice” its nuclear program in exchange for the removal of the American military threat. 

White House envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi are planning to meet on Friday in Istanbul for negotiations toward a new nuclear agreement. According to The Wall Street Journal, senior adviser Jared Kushner is also expected to take part in the talks.

After weeks of high tensions and a buildup of American forces in the region, Washington and Tehran are exploring a new round of negotiations in Istanbul in an effort to avert escalation. The core disputes revolve around Iran’s nuclear program, its missile project and its regional involvement.

Steve Witkoff is set to arrive in Israel for meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, as Washington and Tehran prepare to launch talks in the coming days.

The president’s ambassador to NATO said the US does not want to turn Iran into “another Libya,” but is capable of taking military action. Iran’s leader Khamenei warned in a message to the White House: “Any attack on us will this time lead to a regional war.”