The nuclear talks between the United States and Iran are set to resume this week, in what is likely to be a make-or-break moment for the negotiations as President Donald Trump appears willing to strike should no progress be made in this iteration.
Oman, which has mediated the two rounds of discussions this year, announced that the third round would be held on Thursday in Geneva. In his announcement, Omani Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi said he anticipates “a positive push to go the extra mile towards finalizing the deal.”
The talks will fall slightly before an apparent 10-day deadline from Trump to either continue negotiations with Tehran or launch an attack. He has recently warned of “bad things” to happen if a nuclear deal is not struck.
Ahead of the talks this week, Iran is expected to have a draft of a deal proposal ready for U.S. negotiators by Tuesday, Axios reported. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that Tehran was “still working” on that proposal, which lacks the approval of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
A nuclear deal has been pursued by Trump in the wake of Tehran’s violent crackdown on anti-regime protests in January, which resulted in the deaths of thousands of protesters. He has simultaneously left the door open to a military strike after previously vowing to intervene, amassing a huge armada and military buildup in the Middle East in preparation and as a pressure tactic.
The threat of U.S. military intervention reached new highs last week after Trump publicly revealed that he was “considering” a limited strike on Iran to force the regime into a deal. That was a first since the U.S.-Iran tensions were inflamed by Tehran’s brutal crackdown on dissent.
The chances of a nuclear deal also seem quite low. Despite Tehran’s assurances of progress after the previous rounds, there are unreachable demands from the regime, particularly over its nuclear program.
It has insisted it has a right to enrichment and that a complete a halt of its nuclear program will not be considered. The U.S., meanwhile, wants Tehran to stop enrichment completely, especially after its enriched uranium was a short step away from weapons-grade level last year.
Iran has also limited the scope of the negotiations to solely its nuclear program, which it maintains is peaceful. The U.S., along with Israel, want the talks to include its ballistic missile program and support for terrorist proxies in the region.
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Araghchi reiterated that position on Sunday, saying “there is no other subject” in the negotiations other than its nuclear program.
He did, however, signal openness to a “full monitoring mechanism” for its nuclear facilities and said a “fast” deal on nuclear concerns is “quite possible.”