Iran and the US will hold a third round of nuclear talks on Thursday in Geneva, Oman's Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said on Sunday, amid growing concerns about the risk of military conflict between the longtime adversaries.
The US has built up its military presence in the Middle East, with President Donald Trump warning on Thursday that "really bad things will happen" if no deal is reached to solve a longstanding dispute over Tehran's nuclear programme. Tehran has threatened to retaliate to any strike by targeting regional American bases.
"Pleased to confirm US-Iran negotiations are now set for Geneva this Thursday, with a positive push to go the extra mile towards finalizing the deal," said Oman's foreign minister, who acts as a mediator in indirect talks between Washington and Tehran.
Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian voiced cautious optimism on Sunday in a post on X saying recent negotiations had "yielded encouraging signals", while pointing at Tehran's readiness for "any potential scenario".
The US has for weeks been threatening strikes against Iran. “They have something for every scenario. One scenario takes out the ayatollah and his son and the mullahs,” a senior Trump adviser told Axios over the weekend. “What the President chooses no one knows. I don't think he knows.”
Tension remains high amid military postings by the US and Iranian naval exercises and drills in the Strait of Hormuz this week.
The last round of talks between the US and Iran was held in Geneva on Tuesday. After the negotiations, US officials said that “progress was made, but there are still a lot of details to discuss”. On Thursday, Mr Trump gave Iran a deadline of between 10 and 15 days to come to an agreement.
At the heart is the issue of uranium enrichment. Israel and the US have said they want Iran to cease all enrichment activity and dismantle plants. Iran insists on retaining some fuel-making capacity for peaceful purposes.
US Middle East Steve Witkoff, who has been involved in the several rounds of talks, said Mr Trump was “curious” as to why Iran has not yet yielded to the mounting US pressure.
The US President has been warning about the possibility of strikes for weeks, first amid Iran's crackdown on a nationwide protest movement, and then as Washington and Tehran once again came to the negotiating table to discuss the Iranian nuclear programme.
