In Iran, officials tell of 'serious problems' over US nuclear enrichment talks

Tehran yet to accept invitation for fifth round of talks this week

The Iranian leadership wants to continue enriching uranium under any nuclear deal with the US. EPA

Talks between the US and Iran over Tehran's nuclear programme are stumbling over disagreements on uranium enrichment, according to two senior Iranian officials.

İran has "not accepted" an invitation put forward by mediator Oman for a fifth round of talks due to take place in Rome this Friday, one official said, after the US negotiator Steve Witkoff said enrichment would not be allowed under any deal. Enrichment is “one very, very clear red line” for the Trump administration, Mr Witkoff said on Monday,

His comments left officials in Iran uncertain about the usefulness of more talks. Tehran wants to retain the right to enrichment under any deal for what officials describe as its "peaceful nuclear programme" for scientific and agricultural purposes.

İran "does not want to have another round of talks and them to fail", the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. "With zero enrichment, we don't have a deal,” he added. “But if the goal is no nuclear weapons, we can have a deal.”

Nuclear talks have been led by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US special envoy Steve Witkoff. EPA

Inside the talks

The National obtained a rare press visa for Iran to attend a conference organised by Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Officials in Tehran gave some of the most detailed outlines yet on its position in the continuing talks.

The officials described negotiations, which are solely focused on nuclear activity and do not extend to other issues such as Iran's ballistic missile capacities or regional policies, as "respectful" so far. But there was a "serious problem" with the US insistence on zero enrichment, one of the officials said, and Iranians have been frustrated by what they see as ambitious and inconsistent positions from Washington.

The US has "resorted to threats and new sanctions,” the second official said. “This has clouded the atmosphere of the talks.”

On a tour of Gulf countries last week, the US President Donald Trump called on "nations of conscience" to isolate Iran until it is a "willing partner for peace".

The Omani Foreign Ministry in Muscat is one of the venues being used for nuclear talks. EPA

Oman, which is mediating the talks, has suggested "positive points" that could help to move talks forward from the current impasse, the first official said. If the Iranian delegation goes to Rome this Friday, "I hope the situation will be different and move forward," he added.

The four rounds of talks so far have been "mostly indirect", said one of the officials, who gave "pressure" in the form of US sanctions and military build-up in the Middle East as reasons for not talking directly.

Red lines

While İran rejects an outright ban on enrichment, it is open to negotiations over the scale and locations of the country's nuclear activities, suggesting that it could accept some limitations on the percentage to which it enriches uranium in exchange for sanctions relief. "The number of machines, the level, locations are negotiable, in exchange for termination of sanctions," one of the officials said.

Since the first Trump administration pulled out of a previous nuclear deal between İran and world powers, Tehran has enriched uranium to 60 per cent, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna. That is one step away from the 90 per cent enrichment needed for a nuclear weapon.

Any new deal should follow the same logic as the previous deal, Iran says, although it is aware that neither side believes it ideal. Mr Trump left the deal (officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) in 2018, calling it "the worst deal in history".

"We know you don't like the JCPOA, and we don't like it any more either," was how one of the officials described Iran's message to the US in their first meeting, which took place last month in the capital of Oman, Muscat. "But we believe its logic is still valid – build confidence and transparency on our peaceful nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief."

US President Donald Trump has offered Iran an olive branch but threatened military action if no deal is made. Reuters

Talks have not reached the point of working out the granular detail of what easing those restrictions might look like. Tehran says it first wants to establish the US negotiating position around enrichment.

"We haven't got there yet [in negotiations]," one of the officials said. "First we are trying to understand what the US position is. If they insist on zero enrichment, then we are not going to make a deal. If we can continue to negotiate a deal, then afterwards we will work out how sanctions would be lifted, whether step by step or altogether."

Iran hawks in the US and Israel are against a deal, and want the total elimination of Iran's nuclear programme. İran is aware of pressure on US negotiators from parties that oppose a nuclear deal between the two countries. "But that is not my problem," one of the officials said.

At the same time, Iran says it is keen to continue diplomacy to reach a solution. "We do understand that it should be a win-win game," the official said. "We don't have a problem with the other side claiming victory after negotiations, just as we can claim victory."