Iran, US end nuclear talks in Rome, agree to meet in Oman next week

Iran and the United States would begin having experts meet to discuss details of a possible deal over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear programme, the top Iranian diplomat said Saturday after a second round of negotiations in Rome.

The comments by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who met with US Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff for several hours, suggest movement in the talks. The experts would meet in Oman before Araghchi and Witkoff meet again in Oman on April 26, Araghchi said.

There was no immediate readout from the US side after the meeting at the Omani Embassy in Rome’s Camilluccia neighbourhood. However, President Donald Trump has been pushing for a rapid deal with Iran while threatening military action against it.

“The talks were held in a constructive environment and I can say that is moving forward,” Araghchi told Iranian state television. “I hope that we will be in a better position after the technical talks.”

He added: “This time, we succeeded to reach a better understanding about a sort of principles and aims.” Iranian officials described the talks as indirect, like those last weekend in Muscat, Oman, with Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi shuttling between them in different rooms.

Trump, in his first term, unilaterally withdrew from Iran’s nuclear deal with world powers in 2018, setting off years of attacks and negotiations that failed to restore the accord that drastically limited Tehran’s enrichment of uranium in exchange for the lifting of economic sanctions.