Next round of Iran-US nuclear talks likely to be in Oman at weekend

DUBAI, May 6 (Reuters) - A fourth round of nuclear talks between Iran and the United States is likely to take place over the weekend in the capital of Oman, with Iranian state media pointing to May 11 as a probable date.

Iran's Nournews outlet was the first to report the resumption of Iran-U.S. nuclear talks for Sunday, citing an unnamed official.

Cautioning that the timing was not yet finalised, an Iranian source close to the negotiating team told Reuters: "The talks will take place over two days in Muscat, either on Saturday and Sunday or Sunday and Monday."

A fourth round of nuclear talks between Iran and the United States is likely to take place over the weekend in the capital of Oman, with Iranian state media pointing to May 11 as a probable date.

Iran’s Nournews outlet was the first to report the resumption of Iran-US nuclear talks for Sunday, citing an unnamed official.

Cautioning that the timing was not yet finalized, an Iranian source close to the negotiating team told Reuters: “The talks will take place over two days in Muscat, either on Saturday and Sunday or Sunday and Monday.”

00:25 / 00:50

Initially scheduled for May 3 in Rome, the fourth round of negotiations was postponed with mediator Oman citing “logistical reasons.”

Top US negotiator Steve Witkoff also said Washington was trying to hold the next round of talks this weekend, according to the news site Axios, a day after Iran’s foreign ministry reiterated Tehran’s commitment to diplomacy with Washington.

After the May 3 talks were postponed, a senior Iranian official told Reuters last week that the new date would be set “depending on the US’s approach.”

Tehran had, earlier that same day, accused the US of “contradictory behavior and provocative statements” after Washington warned it of consequences for backing Yemen’s Houthis and imposed new oil-related sanctions on it amid nuclear talks.

“US sanctions on Iran during the nuclear talks are not helping the sides to resolve the nuclear dispute through diplomacy,” the Iranian official had told Reuters. “Depending on the US approach, the date of the next round of talks will be announced.”

Separately on Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the progress in talks between Iran and the United States with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, the Kremlin said.

Putin said Russia was ready to facilitate dialogue between Iran and the US to reach a fair agreement.

US President Donald Trump, who withdrew the US from a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers, has signaled confidence in clinching a new pact that blocks Iran’s path to a nuclear bomb, but has threatened to attack if diplomacy fails.

The United States and other Western countries have long accused Iran of pursuing nuclear weapons — a claim Tehran denies, insisting that its atomic program is solely for civilian purposes.

However, Iran, which openly seeks Israel’s destruction, has accelerated production of 60 percent enriched uranium, an enrichment rate far above what is needed for civilian uses and a short technical step from weapons-grade uranium. It also continues to develop its ballistic missile capabilities.