U.S. and Iranian officials held talks in Oman Friday, as both sides seek to avert a deepening crisis that has raised fears of a wider military confrontation.
Washington is pressing Iran to freeze its nuclear program, discard its enriched uranium stockpile, and address ballistic missiles, regional proxy groups, and human rights abuses. Tehran insists the talks be limited to nuclear issues and says it has a right to enrich uranium on its own soil, while demanding sanctions relief.
The Iranian delegation is led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, while the U.S. side includes special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. The U.S. also added the head of U.S. Central Command Adm. Brad Cooper to the delegation in a move widely regarded as an attempt to increase Iranian awareness of the threat of American military action. Jennifer Griffin of Fox News said on X that the Friday talks between U.S. and Iranian officials were “face to face.” The discussions, the first involving U.S. and Iranian officials since last year’s Israel–Iran war and U.S. strikes on Iran’s main nuclear facilities, are taking place amid a major U.S. military build-up in the Middle East. President Donald Trump has threatened to use force against the Iranian regime if no deal is reached. The administration is also taking other steps to ramp up pressure against Iran; the president signed an executive order Friday enabling the U.S. to place tariffs on any country that trades with Iran.
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