U.S. and Iran Hold New Indirect Talks in Switzerland
On Thursday, U.S. and Iranian officials embarked on another round of indirect negotiations in Switzerland. This takes place as President Trump’s weekend deadline for reaching an accord regarding Tehran’s nuclear program approaches.
The diplomatic teams from both nations arrived independently at an Omani diplomatic site on Lake Geneva.
Oman’s Foreign Ministry shared images of U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff alongside President Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, in discussions with Omani Foreign Minister Bader al-Busaidi about Iran’s proposal.
“Today in Geneva, we have been exchanging innovative and forward-looking ideas,” Al Busaidi posted on X shortly after 1:30 PM local time. “Both U.S. and Iranian negotiators are currently taking a break, but we expect to reconvene later in the day. We are hopeful for further progress.”
These discussions come right after President Trump informed a peace committee meeting in Washington that he would likely decide “probably within the next 10 days” whether a military strike against Iran is warranted.
During his State of the Union address on Tuesday, the President remarked that Iran is “working on building missiles that could soon reach the United States,” among other concerning activities.
Trump added, “We’re negotiating with them. They want a deal, but we haven’t yet heard the crucial statement: ‘We will never have nuclear weapons.’”
U.S. officials have suggested broadening the talks to encompass Iran’s ballistic missile program and the recent violent crackdown on protesters, yet Tehran has shown reluctance to engage on these matters.
Prior to Thursday’s meeting, Ali Shamkhani, a senior advisor to Iran’s Ayatollah Khamenei, mentioned in a post on X, “[i]f preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons is the main issue on the table, this aligns with the Supreme Leader’s fatwa and Iran’s defense principles; a quick agreement is possible.”
Meanwhile, President Trump has positioned two U.S. aircraft carrier groups for potential military action. The USS Abraham Lincoln, along with its strike group, has been stationed in the Middle East since late January, while the USS Gerald R. Ford is on its way from Crete to the eastern Mediterranean near Israel.
