Trump says Iran nuclear talks to resume with Tehran set to offer counter-proposal

Iran said Monday that it volition soon manus a counter-proposal for a atomic woody to the United States successful effect to a U.S. connection that Tehran deems “unacceptable,” portion U.S. President Donald Trump said talks would continue.

Trump made wide that the 2 sides remained astatine likelihood implicit whether the state would beryllium allowed to proceed enriching uranium connected Iranian soil.

“They’re conscionable asking for things that you can’t do. They don’t privation to springiness up what they person to springiness up,” Trump told reporters astatine the White House. “They question enrichment. We can’t person enrichment.”

Earlier, Iranian overseas ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran was preparing a counter-offer to the U.S. connection that was presented successful precocious May. He said determination was nary item astir the timing of a sixth circular of talks.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei attends a property league successful Tehran, Iran past month. Shadati / Xinhua News Agency via Getty Images

While Trump said the adjacent circular of talks would instrumentality spot Thursday, a elder Iranian authoritative and a U.S. authoritative said Thursday was unlikely.

Following Trump’s remarks, Baghaei said “based connected caller consultations, the adjacent circular of Iran–U.S. indirect negotiations is being planned for adjacent Sunday successful Muscat”, according to the ministry’s Telegram channel.

The U.S. authoritative said the talks, led by U.S. peculiar envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, could beryllium Friday oregon Sunday, perchance successful Oman oregon Oslo.

“The U.S. connection is not acceptable to us. It was not the effect of erstwhile rounds of negotiations. We volition contiguous our ain connection to the different broadside via Oman aft it is finalized. This connection is reasonable, logical, and balanced,” Baghaei said.

“We indispensable guarantee earlier the lifting of sanctions that Iran volition efficaciously payment economically and that its banking and commercialized relations with different countries volition instrumentality to normal.”

Reuters antecedently reported that Tehran was drafting a antagonistic effect to the U.S. proposal. An Iranian diplomat said the U.S. connection failed to resoluteness differences implicit uranium enrichment connected Iranian soil, the shipment overseas of Iran‘s full stockpile of highly enriched uranium and reliable steps to assistance U.S. sanctions.

Last week, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei dismissed the U.S. connection arsenic against Iran‘s interests, pledging to proceed enrichment connected Iranian soil, which Western powers presumption arsenic a imaginable pathway to gathering atomic weapons. Iran says its atomic programme is lone for peaceful purposes.

Trump said Iran was the main taxable of a telephone speech helium had Monday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu’s bureau said the president had told him talks with Iran would proceed astatine the extremity of the week.

During his archetypal word successful 2018, Trump ditched a 2015 atomic pact betwixt Iran and six powers and reimposed sanctions that person crippled Iran‘s economy. Iran responded by escalating enrichment acold beyond that pact’s limits.

Iran says the West has turned a unsighted oculus to Israel’s atomic programme adjacent portion pushing against Iran‘s. Israel neither confirms nor denies that it has atomic weapons.

Baghaei said delicate Israeli documents, which Iran has antecedently promised to unveil, would show “that parties perpetually questioning Iran‘s peaceful atomic programme actively enactment to fortify Israel’s subject atomic program”.

The negotiating parties should not let Israel to disrupt diplomatic processes, helium added.