The latest round of US\u2013Iran nuclear talks has produced cautious diplomatic signals, but sharp warnings from Washington underline the fragility of the process. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the United States would stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons \u201cone way or the other,\u201d as negotiations continue in Geneva under Omani mediation.<\/p>\n
Speaking in Paris on the sidelines of International Energy Agency meetings, Wright said President Donald Trump \u201cbelieves firmly we cannot have a nuclear-armed Iran,\u201d adding that Tehran\u2019s potential possession of nuclear weapons would be \u201centirely unacceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n
His remarks came a day after US and Iranian officials met in Geneva in what both sides described as constructive discussions aimed at avoiding military escalation.<\/p>\n
US officials indicated they prefer a diplomatic resolution but have not ruled out stronger measures if talks fail.<\/p>\n
Vice President JD Vance said that while discussions showed progress, Tehran had not yet acknowledged all of Washington\u2019s \u201cred lines.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIn some ways, it went well; they agreed to meet afterwards,\u201d Vance said in a televised interview. \u201cBut it was very clear that the president has set some red lines that the Iranians are not yet willing to acknowledge and work through.\u201d<\/p>\n
Washington has increased military deployments in the region in recent weeks, dispatching two aircraft carriers. Satellite images cited by AFP showed the USS Abraham Lincoln positioned roughly 700 kilometres from Iran\u2019s coast, placing its aircraft within operational range.<\/p>\n
US officials have stated the military build-up is intended to deter escalation while negotiations continue.<\/p>\n
On the Iranian side, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran had agreed with Washington on \u201cguiding principles\u201d to move forward toward a potential agreement.<\/p>\n
Araghchi confirmed that Iran is drafting an initial framework for future negotiations. In a phone call with International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi, he stressed Iran\u2019s focus on preparing a \u201ccoherent framework\u201d to advance discussions, according to Iran\u2019s foreign ministry.<\/p>\n
Key points emerging from the diplomatic track include:<\/p>\n
Agreement on broad guiding principles
\nPlans to exchange draft texts for a possible deal
\nPreparations for a third round of talks
\nContinued mediation by Oman<\/p>\n
Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said \u201cgood progress\u201d had been made but cautioned that substantial work remains.<\/p>\n
Iran has insisted that negotiations remain limited to the nuclear issue. Washington has previously sought to expand discussions to include Iran\u2019s ballistic missile programme and its regional alliances.<\/p>\n
The International Atomic Energy Agency remains central to verification efforts.<\/p>\n
Iran\u2019s permanent representative to the IAEA, Reza Najafi, met in Vienna with Grossi and the ambassadors of China and Russia to discuss upcoming Board of Governors meetings and developments related to Iran\u2019s nuclear programme.<\/p>\n
Tehran has suspended parts of its cooperation with the IAEA and restricted inspector access to sites targeted during the 12-day conflict with Israel in June, in which the United States also struck Iranian nuclear facilities. Iranian officials accuse the agency of bias and failing to condemn those strikes.<\/p>\n
Western governments have long expressed concern that Iran\u2019s nuclear programme could be directed toward producing a nuclear weapon. Tehran maintains that its programme is for peaceful purposes only.<\/p>\n
President Masoud Pezeshkian reiterated this week that Iran is \u201cabsolutely not seeking nuclear weapons,\u201d stating that Tehran is open to verification mechanisms.<\/p>\n
Alongside diplomacy, both sides have engaged in military signalling.<\/p>\n
Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched military exercises in the Strait of Hormuz, describing them as preparation for potential security and military threats. Iranian officials have previously threatened to close the strategic waterway, through which a significant portion of global oil and gas supplies passes.<\/p>\n
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned that Iran has the capability to target US naval assets deployed near its shores.<\/p>\n
The diplomatic process follows last year\u2019s 12-day war between Israel and Iran, during which Israeli strikes targeted Iranian territory and the United States joined by bombing nuclear sites. That conflict halted earlier diplomatic efforts.<\/p>\n
Despite reported progress, several issues remain unresolved:<\/p>\n
Scope of any agreement beyond nuclear restrictions
\nExtent of sanctions relief sought by Iran
\nVerification mechanisms and IAEA access
\nUS conditions described as \u201cred lines\u201d<\/p>\n
Analysts note that Iran faces economic pressure due to longstanding US sanctions, including restrictions on oil exports. At the same time, major concessions could carry domestic political implications within Iran.<\/p>\n
The current round of US\u2013Iran nuclear talks reflects parallel tracks of diplomacy and deterrence. While both sides report progress toward drafting a framework, public statements from Washington highlight unresolved red lines and the possibility of stronger action if negotiations collapse.<\/p>\n
Whether the Geneva process leads to a formal agreement or renewed confrontation will depend on bridging key gaps in the coming rounds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The latest round of US\u2013Iran nuclear talks has produced cautious diplomatic signals, but sharp warnings from Washington underline the fragility of the process. US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the United States would stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons \u201cone way or the other,\u201d as negotiations continue in Geneva under Omani mediation. Speaking in Paris […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28681,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"subtitle":"","format":"standard","override":[{"template":"7","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"left-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"topbottom","share_float_style":"share-monocrhome","show_share_counter":"1","show_view_counter":"1","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","show_post_reading_time":"0","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_prev_next_post":"1","show_popup_post":"1","show_comment_section":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"1","show_post_related":"0","show_inline_post_related":"0"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0"},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"jnews_post_split":{"post_split":[{"template":"1","tag":"h2","numbering":"asc","mode":"normal","first":"0","enable_toc":"0","toc_type":"normal"}]},"footnotes":""},"categories":[79],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28680","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-regional"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28680","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28680"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28680\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28683,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28680\/revisions\/28683"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28681"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28680"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28680"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.iq\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28680"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}