Iran hails 'useful' nuclear talks with US in Rome

The United States and Iran agreed to hold a third round of talks next week on Tehran's nuclear program, Iran said Saturday.

The US and other Western nations fear Tehran's nuclear program is aimed at developing nuclear weapons, but Iran insists it is for civilian purposes only.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and White House envoy Steve Witkoff held a second round of indirect talks at the Omani embassy in Rome on Saturday, with Araghchi saying they had been constructive and forward-looking.  

"This time, we succeeded to reach a better understanding about a sort of principles and aims," Araghchi said.  

The US has yet to comment on the Saturday talks.

More talks between Iran and Washington set for next weekend

The Oman-mediated talks in Rome came a week after the two sides held talks in Muscat described by both sides as "constructive."

Oman's Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi also praised the meetings, saying the talks were gaining momentum and "even the unlikely is possible."

Iran's Foreign Ministry said that "indirect talks" at the technical level would continue this week, and that senior US and Iranian officials would meet for a third round of negotiations next Saturday.

Oman has confirmed that the third round of talks will be held in its capital Muscat, where the first round was held a week ago.

Trump: 'I want Iran to be great and prosperous'

The negotiations took place against a heated diplomatic background, with US President Donald Trump having previously warned of military action if talks fail to bring results.

Trump struck a less hostile tone on Friday, saying, "I'm for stopping Iran, very simply, from having a nuclear weapon."

"I want Iran to be great and prosperous and terrific," he added.

What is the situation with Iran's nuclear program?

The two rounds of negotiations so far involving US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Araghchi have been the highest-level discussions between the two sides since Trump abandoned a landmark nuclear deal in 2018.

The deal stipulated curbs on Tehran's nuclear activities in exchange for the lifting of some sanctions on Iran. But the US pullout provoked the eventual collapse of the agreement.

Iran complied with the terms of the deal for a year after the US pullout but then commenced enriching uranium beyond the agreed limits.

It is now enriching uranium to 60% purity — far above the 3.67% limit in the deal but still below the 90% required for weapons-grade material.

In an interview published on Wednesday by French newspaper Le Monde, the head of the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, said Iran was "not far" from possessing a nuclear bomb. 

Conflicting demands

Witkoff, who previously demanded only that Iran return to the limit set by the 2015 deal, has since called for a complete halt to enrichment, something Araghchi has refused to accept.

Although the US and Iran are also at loggerheads over the Iranian missile program and Tehran's support for militant groups that oppose Israel, Iranian officials insisted that the talks focus only on Iran's nuclear program and lifting of sanctions.

Ahead of the talks, Araghchi said a deal with the US was "likely" if Washington refrained from "making unreasonable and unrealistic demands," without elaborating.

He has expressed openness to concessions regarding the nuclear program and the level of uranium enrichment, while demanding the lifting of US sanctions. 

"Although we have serious doubts about the intentions and motivations of the American side, in any case, we will participate in tomorrow's (Saturday's) negotiations," he said on Friday at a press conference in Moscow.

Iran has always insisted on its right to a nuclear program, saying it is for civilian purposes only.

Edited by: Sean Sinico, Darko Janjevic