Zürcher Nachrichten - Iran says talks with US to focus solely on nuclear issue, lifting sanctions

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff held talks Saturday in Muscat, marking the highest-level Iran-US nuclear negotiations since the collapse of a 2015 accord.

They agreed to meet again in seven days.

"Negotiations will continue to be indirect. Oman will remain the mediator, but we are discussing the location of future negotiations," foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said in an interview with state TV.

He said the talks would only focus on "the nuclear issue and the lifting of sanctions," and that Iran "will not have any talks with the American side on any other issue."

Analysts had said the US would push to include on the agenda discussions over Iran's ballistic missile programme along with Tehran's support for the "axis of resistance" -- a network of militant groups opposed to Israel.

Tehran has, however, maintained it will talk only about its nuclear programme.

Donald Trump in 2018 pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers during his first term as US president.

Saturday's rare negotiations came weeks after Trump sent a letter to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei urging nuclear talks while warning of possible military action if Iran refuses.

Iran and the US separately described Saturday's discussions as "constructive".

Iran said the talks were held indirectly with Oman's foreign minister acting as intermediary.

The negotiators, Araghchi and Witkoff, spoke directly for "a few minutes" after the talks, Tehran's foreign ministry said.

Another round of talks will be held on Saturday, April 19.

Asked about the talks, Trump told journalists aboard Air Force One: "I think they're going OK. Nothing matters until you get it done."

The process took place in a "friendly atmosphere", Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said.

- 'Turning point' -

Iran, reeling from Israel's pummelling of its allies Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, is seeking relief from wide-ranging sanctions hobbling its economy.

Tehran has agreed to the meetings despite baulking at Trump's "maximum pressure" campaign of ramping up sanctions and repeated military threats.

On Sunday, Iranian media largely welcomed the rare talks as a "decisive turning point" in relations between the longtime foes.

Iran's conservative Javan daily praised the US for "not seeking to expand the negotiations to non-nuclear issues".

The government-sponsored newspaper, Iran, described the discussions as "constructive and respectful," quoting Araghchi.

Meanwhile, the reformist Shargh newspaper said it was a "decisive turning point" in Iran-US relations.

The hardline Kayhan newspaper, which was largely sceptical in the days leading up to the talks, lamented that Iran does not have a "plan B" while there was "no clear prospect for an agreement with Donald Trump."

It, however, lauded the fact that the American side did not bring up "the dismantling of nuclear facilities" and "the possibility of a military attack" during the discussions.

Tehran and Washington have had no diplomatic relations since shortly after Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution that toppled the Western-backed shah.

Iran has been wary about engaging in talks with the United States, often citing previous experience and undermined trust.

After pulling out of the 2015 nuclear deal Trump reimposed sweeping economic sanctions against Iran.

Tehran continued to adhere to the agreement for a year after Washington's pullout but later began rolling back its own commitments.

Iran has consistently denied seeking to acquire nuclear weapons.

O.Meier--NZN