Trump: “We Are Nearing a Deal and Aim to Resolve the Iran File”
According to Ynet, US President Donald Trump claimed that Washington is very close to reaching a nuclear agreement with Tehran regarding the ongoing indirect negotiations with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
On his way back from the funeral of Pope Francis, the leader of the world’s Catholics, in the Vatican, Trump said on Air Force One that the negotiations with Iran were “going very well.”
He also repeated threats and nonsense against Tehran, claiming: “We will have an agreement without bombing. It is expected that we will reach an agreement very soon. I want to close the Iran file.”
The third round of indirect negotiations between Tehran and Washington in an attempt to reach a nuclear agreement with Iran was held in Oman on Saturday this week, with the presence of Steve Whittaker, Trump’s special envoy, as well as Abbas Araqchi, the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Araqchi had said about the process of holding the third round of Iran-US negotiations that “the third round of negotiations was held in Muscat, Oman, in a calm environment. The talks this time were much more serious than before, and we gradually entered into technical discussions. We exchanged opinions in writing several times. Until the next meeting, a review is to be held in the capitals to see how we can reduce the differences.”
He also emphasized, “It was quite evident that both sides entered the talks seriously, and this creates an atmosphere in which we hope that progress can be made. Of course, this hope is very cautious, and there are issues on which general understandings must be reached and then the details can be negotiated.”
The New York Times newspaper yesterday quoted a senior American official as claiming that the next round of indirect talks between Tehran and Washington will be held within the next two weeks.
The newspaper also quoted the official as adding that “the atmosphere of the talks was very serious and constructive. We distanced ourselves from some of the bigger issues, but that does not mean that we have resolved all the differences. We have differences on big and small issues. But to reduce these differences, talks will be held in the capitals (Tehran and Washington) this week. The next round of talks will be held in Europe, with Oman as the mediator. He also said that the talks (the third round) lasted four hours and described them as “productive.”
The New York Times also claimed, citing another informed source, that the next round of talks will most likely take place in the next two weeks, but “the American side needs some time to review the information and proposals from the Iranians. The American side wants to move the talks to a more suitable place and closer to the United States.”