In the lead-up to the anticipated meeting, Washington maintained its “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran, imposing fresh sanctions targeting the country's oil infrastructure and nuclear program.
Despite the mounting pressure, Iran announced on April 11 that it was giving diplomacy a “genuine” opportunity in unexpected nuclear talks with the United States, set to take place in Oman.
Longstanding rivals, Iran and the United States, are scheduled to meet in Muscat on Saturday, April 12, in hopes of reaching a potential nuclear agreement. The announcement came after U.S. President Donald Trump made a surprising declaration on April 7, 2025, confirming his administration’s intent to engage in negotiations with Tehran.
“We are giving diplomacy a genuine chance, in good faith and with full vigilance. The U.S. should value this decision, which comes despite their continued hostile rhetoric,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said in a post on X.
The talks will be led by US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. While President Trump has described the talks as “direct,” Araghchi has maintained they will be “indirect.”
Earlier, President Donald Trump said that Israel would be the “leader” of a potential military strike against Iran if Tehran does not give up its nuclear weapons program.
Trump made the remarks ahead of planned talks involving U.S. and Iranian officials in Oman. Trump earlier this week said the talks would be “direct”, while Iran has described the engagement as “indirect” talks with the U.S., the AP reported.
The U.S. and other world powers reached a long-term nuclear deal in 2015 that limited Tehran’s uranium enrichment in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions. But Trump unilaterally withdrew the U.S. from the nuclear deal in 2018, calling it the “worst deal ever”.
