President Trump announced on Monday that the United States will hold “direct” negotiations with Iran next Saturday, in a final effort to curb the country’s nuclear program. He warned that Iran would be in “great danger” if it did not reach an agreement.
If direct negotiations take place, they will be the first official face-to-face discussions between the two nations since Trump abandoned the nuclear accord of the Obama era seven years ago. The talks will occur during a precarious time, as Iran lost its air defenses near its key nuclear sites due to precise Israeli strikes in October. Additionally, Iran can no longer rely on its proxy forces in the Middle East to retaliate against Israel.
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, confirmed through a social media post that talks will take place on Saturday in Oman, but stated that they will be indirect, meaning intermediaries will facilitate discussions between the two sides. He emphasized that it is both an opportunity and a test, with the ball in America’s court.
Following instructions from its supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran has refused direct nuclear negotiations with American officials since Trump withdrew from the previous agreement. However, after Trump’s statements on Monday, three Iranian officials stated that Ayatollah Khamenei has changed his stance and may potentially allow direct talks.
The officials stated that if the indirect talks on Saturday are respectful and productive, then direct talks may follow. They requested anonymity as they were not authorized to speak publicly.
However, Iran is likely to resist completely dismantling its nuclear infrastructure, which allows it to produce fuel for an atomic bomb relatively quickly. The country has been discussing the need to develop a weapon, given its vulnerability in a series of missile exchanges with Israel last year.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who was visiting the United States and sitting beside Trump, insisted that any resulting deal should follow the “Libya model,” which requires Iran to dismantle and remove its nuclear infrastructure. However, Libya’s nuclear enrichment equipment was largely unused before being transferred to the United States in 2003, while Iran’s infrastructure has been operating for decades and is scattered around the country, much of it underground.
Mr. Netanyahu was unusually quiet during the question-and-answer session with reporters, a stark contrast to his previous visit to Washington two months ago. He mostly observed as Mr. Trump criticized European countries and threatened additional punitive tariffs against China unless it withdraws its threat of retaliatory tariffs by the next day. Mr. Trump also created confusion regarding whether his tariff structure was intended for permanent revenue or leverage for negotiations.
Mr. Netanyahu left the Oval Office without a public commitment from Mr. Trump to eliminate the 17 percent tariff he had placed on Israel, one of America’s closest allies. Securing such a commitment and obtaining more weapons for the conflict with Hamas in Gaza and Israeli military operations in the West Bank were among the main objectives of his trip. Whether the two leaders discussed Israeli or joint Israel-American military options against the main Iranian nuclear sites, they did not indicate any such discussion during their public comments.
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The closest Mr. Trump came was to say, “I believe everyone agrees that reaching a deal would be preferable to taking the obvious course of action. The obvious is something that I’m not willing to participate in, nor is Israel, if they can avoid it.” Again, Mr. Netanyahu remained silent as Mr. Trump, being dominating and talkative, barely allowed him to speak.
Mr. Trump added, “So we are going to see if we can avoid it, but it’s becoming increasingly dangerous territory, and hopefully those talks will be successful.”
To some extent, Mr. Trump is addressing a problem of his own making. The 2015 nuclear accord resulted in Iran exporting 97 percent of its enriched uranium and the equipment needed to produce nuclear fuel. President Barack Obama and his top aides claimed that it was the best deal they could secure. However, it allowed Iran to retain the equipment and knowledge to rebuild after Mr. Trump withdrew from the agreement. Today, Iran has enough fuel to produce more than six nuclear weapons in a relatively short period of time.
The exact time it would take is a matter of debate. In early February, The New York Times reported that Iranian intelligence had discovered a secret team of scientists exploring a faster, though less sophisticated, approach to developing an atomic weapon. Presumably, Mr. Trump has been briefed on these findings, which came at the end of the Biden administration, and they have added urgency to the talks. Administration officials say they will not engage in prolonged negotiations with Tehran.
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p class=”css-at9mc1 evys1bk0″>Mr. Trump’s unexpected announcement of a “top-level” meeting on Monday sparked outrage in Iranian media. Some Iranians reacted with enthusiasm, expressing hope on social media that the negotiations would improve the economic situation and avert the threat of war, which has increased in recent months.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/07/us/politics/iran-nuclear-talks-trump.html
