Bombed reactors. Nationwide protests. Open threats of war. Now Iran and the US meet again in Oman — with the nuclear clock ticking.
DUBAI — Iran and the United States are set to hold nuclear talks on Friday in Oman, renewing high-stakes diplomacy over Tehran’s nuclear program following a brief war with Israel and a violent internal crackdown that has left thousands dead and tens of thousands detained.
The talks come amid renewed pressure from Donald Trump, who has warned that the United States could strike Iran if executions of protesters escalate or if Tehran accelerates its nuclear activities. The negotiations revive a diplomatic track that was disrupted in June, when Israel launched a 12-day war against Iran, prompting U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
Trump’s Letter and Renewed Pressure
The current round of diplomacy traces back to a letter Trump sent on March 5, 2025, to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, urging negotiations while warning of severe consequences if talks failed.
“I hope you’re going to negotiate,” Trump said in a televised interview the following day, adding that military action would be “a terrible thing” if diplomacy collapsed.
While Trump has intensified sanctions since returning to office, he has also framed negotiations as a last chance to avert further conflict. Khamenei, however, has repeatedly warned that Iran would retaliate against any attack, particularly as the Islamic Republic faces its gravest internal crisis in decades.
Oman’s Mediation Role
The talks will again be mediated by Oman, a longtime diplomatic intermediary between Washington and Tehran. Previous discussions involved Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, including rare face-to-face meetings.
Negotiations stalled last year over uranium enrichment. U.S. officials insist Iran must abandon enrichment entirely, while Tehran maintains it will not surrender what it calls its sovereign right to peaceful nuclear technology. That impasse was overtaken by the outbreak of war in June.
War, Protests and Nuclear Setbacks
Israel’s June offensive, followed by U.S. strikes, targeted Iranian nuclear facilities. In November, Tehran acknowledged it had halted uranium enrichment after the attacks, though inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency have not been able to fully assess the damage.
Soon after, Iran was engulfed by nationwide protests triggered by the collapse of its currency. The demonstrations escalated into a broader uprising, met by a sweeping security crackdown that human rights groups say killed thousands.
Nuclear Concerns Persist
Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful, but Western governments remain deeply concerned. Tehran is currently enriching uranium to 60% purity, close to weapons-grade levels — an unprecedented step for a country without declared nuclear weapons.
Under the 2015 nuclear deal, Iran was limited to 3.67% enrichment and a stockpile of 300 kilograms. The IAEA now estimates Iran’s stockpile at nearly 9,870 kilograms, including material enriched to high levels.
U.S. intelligence agencies say Iran has not yet launched a weapons program but has taken steps that could allow it to build a nuclear device if it chooses.
Decades of Hostility
Relations between Iran and the United States have been hostile since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which toppled the U.S.-backed Shah and led to the 444-day hostage crisis at the American embassy in Tehran. Since then, relations have oscillated between confrontation and cautious diplomacy, peaking with the 2015 nuclear agreement before Trump withdrew from it in 2018.
Friday’s talks in Oman reopen a diplomatic channel at a moment of extreme volatility — with Iran weakened militarily and politically, the United States escalating pressure, and the prospect of wider conflict still looming over the region.
