Iran and the United States reportedly wrapped up a fresh round of negotiations in Rome on Saturday, which Iranian officials called a positive step that paved the way for more discussions the following week.
After leaving the indirect talks with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi gave a cautious judgment.
Iran’s top ambassador announced that higher-level officials would also meet next week, along with technical experts from both sides.
He added Oman, which will hold the next conference, would continue to mediate the negotiations. The negotiations were held at the Omani embassy in the Italian capital on Saturday.
There will be a U.S.-Iran meeting next week, according to U.S. officials, but they did not elaborate.
The two parties are prepared to enter a new round of their talks, and the next meeting will take place in Muscat, according to a statement from Oman’s Foreign Ministry.
According to those familiar with the situation, Iran was preparing to forward a number of suggestions for a new nuclear agreement prior to the Saturday meeting, including requesting assurances from the Trump administration that the United States would not withdraw from a future agreement.
Araghchi participated in the highest-level U.S.-Iranian meetings in years last weekend, hosted by Oman, to discuss a possible agreement with Witkoff.
The two parties were in separate rooms for the first indirect negotiations, which were mediated by Omani authorities.
However, according to someone acquainted with the discussions, they ended with Araghchi and Witkoff having a direct meeting for 45 minutes.
Along with the assurances, the Iranians were supposed to talk about how a deal could handle their existing enriched uranium stockpile.
According to Iranian and Arab officials, they also seek to arrange a high-level visit to Washington and will talk about a strategy for removing economic sanctions.
The United States has long accused Tehran of preparing the option to produce a nuclear bomb and has demanded that the program be halted or subject to stringent limitations, despite Iran’s insistence that the program is for peaceful reasons.
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