Iran Says Nuclear Talks With US Have ‘Possibility of Progress’

Tehran said the fifth round of negotiations with Washington on the Iranian nuclear program was conducted professionally.

The Iranian Foreign Minister expressed optimism that the US and Iran could reach an agreement over his country’s nuclear energy program. Italy hosted the talks with the Omani mediator issuing a less optimistic statement following the talks. 

“This round was one of the most professional stages of negotiations we have ever experienced. In this meeting, the positions and principles of the Islamic Republic of Iran regarding the negotiation process were once again presented with complete transparency,” Abbas Araghchi said. 

He continued, “Although we have not yet reached the final agreement stage, the atmosphere prevailing in today’s negotiations, especially given the proposals made by Oman to remove obstacles, has strengthened the possibility of achieving progress.”

The optimistic statement followed multiple Iranian officials stating that Tehran would not give up its nuclear enrichment program. Several US officials have said that Washington will not reach a new deal with Tehran unless the Islamic Republic dismantles its enrichment program. 

Donald Trump’s Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff, who is leading the US talks with Iran, said Sunday that Washington would not allow Tehran to keep any enrichment capabilities. “We have one very, very clear red line, and that is enrichment. We cannot allow even one percent of an enrichment capability,” he said.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei responded on Tuesday, calling Witkoff’s remarks “utter nonsense.” “For them to say, ‘we won’t allow uranium enrichment,’ is utter nonsense,” he explained. 

Before the talks on Friday morning, Araghchi wrote on X that demanding Iran dismantle its nuclear enrichment program was a red line. “Figuring out the path to a deal is not rocket science. Zero nuclear weapons = we DO have a deal. Zero enrichment = we do NOT have a deal. Time to decide…”

While Araghchi’s remarks following the meeting were positive, the Omani mediator’s statement was notably less positive. “The fifth round of Iran-US talks have concluded today in Rome with some but not conclusive progress. We hope to clarify the remaining issues in the coming days, to allow us to proceed towards the common goal of reaching a sustainable and honourable agreement,” Muscat said. 

Kyle Anzalone is the opinion editor of Antiwar.com and news editor of the Libertarian Institute. He hosts The Kyle Anzalone Show and is co-host of Conflicts of Interest with Connor Freeman.