Senior officials from the United States and Iran are set to hold talks in Oman as regional mediators push to prevent a military confrontation following weeks of escalating tensions.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has travelled to Muscat for the discussions, while the US delegation is expected to include special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and adviser, Jared Kushner. Oman has long played a quiet mediating role between Washington and Tehran.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said the talks aim to reach “a fair, mutually satisfactory, and honourable agreement regarding the nuclear issue.” However, the scope of the discussions remains unclear. The Trump administration has insisted that negotiations should also cover Iran’s ballistic missile programme, its support for regional armed groups, and its human rights record conditions Tehran has firmly rejected.
The talks come amid a significant US military build-up in the Middle East, which Washington says is a response to Iran’s violent crackdown on nationwide anti-government protests last month. Human rights organisations report that thousands of people were killed during the unrest.
Uncertainty over the agenda and format of the talks had previously threatened to derail the meeting. Both sides remain far apart, but diplomats hope the discussions could at least produce a framework for future negotiations.
President Trump has repeatedly warned that the US could carry out military strikes if Iran does not agree to halt its nuclear programme and dismantle its stockpile of enriched uranium. In recent weeks, the US has deployed thousands of additional troops to the region, along with an aircraft carrier, warships, and fighter jets moves Trump described as an “armada.”
Iran has vowed to respond forcefully to any attack, warning it would target US military assets in the Middle East and Israel. Last week, Araghchi said Iran’s armed forces were “with their fingers on the trigger.”
This marks the first direct engagement between US and Iranian officials since last year’s war between Israel and Iran, during which US forces bombed Iran’s three main nuclear facilities. Tehran claims its uranium enrichment activities ceased following those attacks.
For Iran’s leadership, analysts say the talks may represent a final opportunity to avert further US military action at a time when the Islamic Republic is facing its most serious internal challenge since the 1979 revolution, driven by economic crisis and widespread public anger.
