The second round of negotiations between the United States and Iran over the latter’s nuclear program will take place next week in Geneva, Switzerland, according to multiple reports.
The Swiss Foreign Ministry told the Associated Press that the nuclear talks will again be mediated by Oman. While no date was specified, Israeli outlet Channel 12 reported that they are slated for Tuesday.
The high-stakes negotiations will now resume a little over a week after the first round was held on Feb. 6. Those took place in Muscat, Oman’s capital, and saw Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi meet with President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner.
Progress appeared to be very little, as Iran has sought to limit the discussions to solely its nuclear program. Even then, the regime has insisted nuclear enrichment is its right, a stance at odds with the Trump administration.
Much has changed over the past few days, however. On Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Trump in Washington in part to raise concerns over the scope of the discussions.
Netanyahu has indicated he wants any deal to include Iran’s ballistic missile program, the regime’s support for terrorist proxies, as well as the nuclear program. He suggested after the meeting with Trump that this is unchanged and indeed “must” be included.
THOUSANDS RALLY IN MUNICH AGAINST IRAN REGIME BEFORE SECOND ROUND OF NUCLEAR TALKS
All eyes are currently on Trump, who has been weighing his options after Iran’s security forces killed thousands of its own civilians during anti-regime protests last month.
While he has expressed a desire for the nuclear talks to continue, Trump also recently sent a second U.S. aircraft carrier to the Middle East and said regime change in Tehran would be the “best thing” to happen to the country, further increasing the pressure on Iran to either agree to a deal or potentially face a U.S. attack.