That the negotiations will be advancing into the technical phase, and that they will be advancing into that phase only after two exploratory rounds, signify that the negotiating parties have reached solid understanding on the ground rules.
Iranian officials had said that preliminary negotiations would enable the Islamic Republic to gauge the seriousness of the United States and offer a quick window into whether Washington would seek to make “excessive demands” — calls in relation to Iran’s defensive military power and ties to regional groups, which are Tehran’s stated red lines. The officials had said any negotiations would have to be limited to the Iranian nuclear program.
With Baqaei announcing that the negotiations would now center on technical matters, it could be assumed that that early dealbreaker has been avoided, according to IRNA.
“Helpful indirect negotiations were held today between Iran and America, mediated by Oman’s foreign minister, in a constructive atmosphere,” he wrote on his X account shortly after the talks wrapped up. “The two sides agreed to resume indirect talks within the next few days on the technical level and subsequently continue next Saturday on the level of the two top negotiators.”
Araqchi himself, who later appeared among reporters, confirmed progress had been made.
He said: “I can tell that the negotiations are moving forward. We were able to reach better understanding about a series of fundamentals and objectives.”
“The subject of the negotiations from our standpoint is the nuclear program and we will be committed to that subject. Obviously, as far as we are concerned, nothing other than building trust toward Iran’s peaceful nuclear program in return for the removal of sanctions will be the subject of the negotiations. The Americans have been adhering [to that framework] so far,” Araqchi said.
The foreign minister said expert-level talks would begin on Wednesday, April 23.
“It’s only natural that experts would have more time to enter into the details and design the framework for an agreement,” he said, without specifying where the technical negotiations would be held.
The top negotiators would meet in Oman next Saturday (April 26) to review the work carried out by the experts, he added.
Araqchi also said that it was too early for experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (I.A.E.A.) to take part in the negotiations.
The negotiations, the second between the two sides, started and finished in Rome on Saturday. Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and Steve Witkoff, the U.S. president’s special envoy to the Middle East, were the top negotiators. Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi mediated by shuffling between the two sides.
A preliminary round was held in Oman’s capital, Muscat, on April 12.
The talks are aimed at reaching an agreement over Iran’s nuclear program and the removal of sanctions on the Islamic Republic. They came after U.S. President Donald Trump wrote to Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, requesting that negotiations be opened into a deal between Tehran and Washington. Trump unilaterally withdrew the U.S. from a previous agreement with Iran in 2018. Ayatollah Khamenei authorized indirect negotiations.
