Iran, US Agree to Extend Talks After ‘Constructive’ Meetings

Iran said the first formal talks with US President Donald Trump’s administration over its nuclear program were “constructive,” and the two sides said they’ll meet again in a week.

The two sides discussed Iran’s nuclear program and the lifting of sanctions “in a constructive atmosphere and with mutual respect,” the Iranian foreign ministry said in a statement after indirect talks in Oman that lasted for more than two hours. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and the US special envoy Steve Witkoff met briefly and spoke after the talks, according to the statement.

The discussions were “very positive and constructive,” while the issues involved are “very complicated,” the White House said in a statement. Witkoff told Araghchi “that he had instructions from President Trump to resolve our two nations’ differences through dialogue and diplomacy, if that is possible,” according to the US readout.

Saturday’s meetings were the first top-level talks by the US and Iran since 2022, marking a renewed effort to resolve years of standoff over Iran’s nuclear program. Trump has said repeatedly he wants a deal or will resort to military action, while Tehran has said it won’t respond to threats and would only agree to indirect talks. 

Araghchi told Iranian state television the delegations plan to reconvene April 19, which the White House statement confirmed. The talks may be held at a different location, with Oman continuing to serve as the facilitator, Araghchi said.

“As a first meeting, it was a constructive session, held in a calm and highly respectful environment; no inappropriate language was used,” Araghchi said. He added that both sides had demonstrated a commitment to pursuing a “desirable agreement from a position of equality.”

“Neither side wants fruitless, protracted, or time-wasting negotiations,” the minister said. “The American side also said their preference is for an agreement to be reached in the shortest time possible, but it won’t be easy.”

Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi, who mediated the talks between the delegations in separate rooms, said the discussions took place in “a friendly atmosphere conducive to bridging viewpoints and ultimately achieving regional and global peace, security, and stability.”

Oil traders have been keeping an eye on the negotiations, though their focus for now is on the impact of Trump’s tariff policy and its threat to global demand, which sent crude prices to four-year lows this week. 

Iranian production remains robust with output near a six-year high of almost 3.4 million barrels per day, though there are signs of exports backing up as traders brace for tougher sanctions.

Trump abandoned the original 2015 nuclear deal with Iran in his first term and has been the driving force behind strict sanctions that have severely hobbled the Iranian economy.

Iran’s clerical establishment has been dealing with increasing levels of unrest and dissent in recent years and is broadly unpopular with much of the country’s urban middle class who’ve endured rampant inflation and a tanking currency for more than a decade. 

With assistance from Golnar Motevalli and Rachel Lavin.

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