Iran nuclear deal: Second round of talks ends positively, with technical discussions to begin on Wednesday

Third round to take place in Oman, foreign ministry confirms

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the second round of nuclear talks with the US in Rome on Saturday were positive. EPA

The second round of indirect US-Iran talks on Iran's nuclear programme have concluded in Rome with a "positive" outcome, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said.

Further negotiations will take place on Saturday, April 26, he confirmed, with technical experts set to meet before that.

Mr Araghchi met US envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff briefly during the first round of negotiations in Oman on April 12, although the main bulk of discussions were held through a mediator.

It is believed Saturday's talks took place under a similar arrangement, with both sides in separate rooms. The US did not immediately comment after the discussions ended at the Omani Embassy in Rome's Camilluccia neighbourhood.

"The second round of negotiations of talks were good and positive in a positive atmosphere," Mr Araghchi told Iranian state outlet PressTV, adding that the two sides agreed on the "principles and goals" of the agreement.

Based on that, a decision was reached for technical experts to hold indirect talks on Wednesday, he said.

Mr Araghchi said it should become clearer whether reaching an agreement is possible after the experts meet.

The third official round of negotiations will take place the following Saturday in Oman, the country's foreign ministry confirmed.

The next phase of discussions aims to ensure Iran is "completely free of nuclear weapons and sanctions", while "maintaining its ability to develop peaceful nuclear energy", the ministry said in a statement.

Mr Araghchi told the semi-official Tasnim news agency that the US had so far not raised topics that are outside Iran's scope of negotiation, a reference to Tehran's insistence that it will negotiate only on issues pertaining to its nuclear programme.

Iran wants a nuclear deal with the US to include provisions to contain Israel and facilitate investment, a senior adviser to Iranian supreme leader ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Saturday.

In statements posted in multiple languages on X, including English and Hebrew, Ali Shamkhani said Mr Khamenei had given negotiators "full discretion" to pursue a deal based on nine principles.

The principles are seriousness, assurance, balance, the removal of sanctions, the avoidance of threats, speed, "the containment of nuisances (such as Israel)" and the facilitation of investment, he said, as well as the rejection of the so-called Libyan model, referring to Libya's surrender of its nuclear capabilities in 2003.

“Iran is there for a balanced agreement, not to surrender,” Mr Shamkhani said.

Oman's mediation of the current talks is a reprisal of its role in initiating the negotiations that led to the 2015 nuclear pact between Iran and world powers. Omani state media announced on Saturday that Sultan Haitham would be travelling to Russia on Monday, days after Mr Araghchi visited Moscow.

The Iranian Foreign Minister held talks in the Russian capital on Friday with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, who said Moscow would be willing to play a role in the current negotiations.

The steady progress in the negotiations is taking place against the backdrop of threats by US President Donald Trump, who gave Iran two months to reach an agreement or risk military action.

With Iran's previous nuclear deal with world powers, the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, set to expire in October, the pressure is on Tehran to reach a new agreement on curtailing its nuclear programme before sanctions are reimposed, or Mr Trump makes good on his threats.