Iran and the United States will resume talks on Iran's nuclear program in Istanbul on Friday. US President Donald Trump warned that if no agreement is reached, "bad things" could happen, pointing to the deployment of large US warships toward Iran.
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Arakchi are expected to attend the talks. The aim of the meeting is to revive diplomacy in the long-running dispute over the nuclear program and ease fears of a new regional war.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Tehran is considering "various dimensions and aspects of the negotiations," adding that "time plays a key role for Iran, as it wants to achieve the lifting of unfair sanctions as soon as possible."
According to a regional diplomat, representatives from countries such as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates will also be present in Istanbul.
Turkey and other regional partners are seeking de-escalation.
Trump's demands
Trump is demanding concessions from Tehran, with Iranian sources saying the US insists on zero uranium enrichment, restrictions on the ballistic missile program, and an end to support for regional allies.
However, Iran is demanding that there be no preconditions for the resumption of negotiations. It has, however, indicated some flexibility on the issue of uranium enrichment. This could include the transfer of 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium or the acceptance of zero enrichment within the consortium as a solution.
At the same time, Tehran is demanding that the United States move its military assets out of Iran. "The ball is now in Trump's court," the Iranian official added.
Tehran also emphasizes that the priority is the lifting of economic sanctions.
Repairs to Iranian nuclear facilities
Iran's influence in the region has been weakened by a series of Israeli attacks on its allies—from Hamas in the Gaza Strip to Hezbollah in Lebanon to the Houthis in Yemen and militias in Iraq—as well as the ouster of its close ally, former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
In June last year, the United States struck Iranian nuclear targets after a 12-day Israeli bombing campaign. Tehran has since claimed that it has halted its uranium enrichment work.
According to Reuters, recent satellite images of the two sites that were hit, Isfahan and Natanz, suggest that some repair work has been going on there since December. New roofs have appeared on two previously destroyed buildings. The images were provided by Planet Labs.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has repeatedly called on Iran to explain what happened to its stockpile of highly enriched uranium after the June attacks.
Western countries fear that uranium enrichment could lead to the production of material for a nuclear warhead. However, Iran claims that its nuclear program is exclusively for electricity generation and other civilian purposes.
(reuters, max, est)