Iran and the United States will open talks in Oman as early as this week, with Washington signaling it will test the chances for progress on Iran’s nuclear program while refusing to rule out military action. Both capitals confirmed late Wednesday that delegations would meet in Muscat, the first such encounter since June, when the United States joined Israel’s war against Iran with strikes on nuclear sites.
President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi are due to lead their teams in the Oman talks. The Gulf nation has repeatedly served as a discreet mediator between the two adversaries, though the location, timing and scope of the talks had been in flux until late Wednesday’s confirmation.
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“Iran enters diplomacy with open eyes and a steady memory of the past year. We engage in good faith and stand firm on our rights,” Araghchi wrote on X ahead of the meetings.
Tehran framed its participation as a duty to avoid war. Iran “has a responsibility not to miss any opportunity to use diplomacy” to preserve peace, it said, adding it hoped the United States would take part “with responsibility, realism and seriousness.”
The White House said it intends to explore “zero nuclear capacity” for Iran, a position Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reiterated while warning that Trump had “many options at his disposal aside from diplomacy.” The administration’s dual-track message—testing talks while keeping force on the table—sets a tense backdrop for discussions expected to center on nuclear limits and verification.
“They’re negotiating,” Trump said of Iran. “They don’t want us to hit them, we have a big fleet going there,” he added, referring to the aircraft carrier group he has repeatedly called an “armada.”
Vice President JD Vance told SiriusXM that Trump would “keep his options open,” saying the president would try to secure outcomes “through non-military means” but would choose force if he deemed it the only path.
The talks follow a peak in nationwide protests in Iran last month against the clerical leadership. Rights groups say authorities responded with a sweeping crackdown that left thousands dead, an upheaval that has intensified international scrutiny and raised the stakes around any diplomatic opening.
Disagreements over the scope of the Muscat agenda nearly derailed preparations. Washington had pressed to fold in Iran’s regional proxy networks and ballistic missile program—longstanding U.S. concerns—but Tehran resisted expanding the docket or involving regional governments. The New York Times, citing Iranian officials, reported that the two sides agreed to exclude regional actors; while the agenda will focus on the nuclear file, it will also address missiles and militant groups “with the goal of coming up with a framework for a deal.”
European and regional leaders urged restraint. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, speaking in Doha, appealed to Iran’s leadership to “truly enter talks,” citing a “great fear of military escalation in the region.” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he saw both parties trying to “make room for diplomacy,” adding that conflict was “not the solution.”
Still, analysts warned against optimism. The U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War said Iran “continues to show inflexibility toward addressing U.S. demands,” lowering the odds of a negotiated breakthrough. Meanwhile, the Pentagon has maneuvered a naval group led by the USS Abraham Lincoln into the region. Iranian officials have vowed to retaliate against U.S. bases if attacked; state television quoted army spokesman Gen. Mohammad Akraminia as saying Tehran has “easy” access to U.S. regional positions and that it is Washington that must choose “between compromise or war.”
Whether Muscat becomes a bridge to a broader de-escalation or a brief pause before confrontation may hinge on early signals from both delegations. For now, the Oman channel offers a rare venue for face-to-face messaging on nuclear limits, missiles and proxy activity—issues that have repeatedly pushed the United States and Iran to the brink.
By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
