Trump says U.S. starting direct talks with Iran about its nuclear program

Thomson Reuters

· Posted: Apr 07, 2025 6:16 PM EDT | Last Updated: 13 minutes ago

U.S. President Donald Trump said connected Monday that the United States and Iran were opening nonstop talks connected Tehran's atomic program, a astonishment announcement aft Iranian officials had appeared to rebuff U.S. calls for specified negotiations.

But successful a motion of the hard way up to immoderate woody betwixt the 2 geopolitical foes, Trump issued a stark informing that if the talks are unsuccessful, "Iran is going to beryllium successful large danger."

Iran had nary contiguous authoritative effect to Trump's remarks. It had pushed backmost against Trump's demands successful caller weeks that it straight negociate implicit its atomic programme oregon beryllium bombed, but it had precocious near the doorway unfastened to indirect discussions.

"We're having nonstop talks with Iran, and they've started. It'll spell connected Saturday. We person a precise large meeting, and we'll spot what tin happen," Trump told reporters successful the Oval Office during talks with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"And I deliberation everybody agrees that doing a woody would beryllium preferable," Trump said. Trump said Saturday's talks with Iran would beryllium astatine a precise precocious level but declined to elaborate. He besides declined to accidental wherever the talks would instrumentality spot but held retired the anticipation that a woody could beryllium reached.

Years since direct talks

The U.S. and Iran held indirect talks during Joe Biden's statesmanlike word but they made small if immoderate progress. The past known nonstop negotiations betwixt the 2 governments were nether President Barack Obama, who spearheaded the 2015 planetary atomic woody that Trump aboriginal abandoned.

Trump has said helium would similar a woody implicit Iran's atomic programme to a subject confrontation and helium said connected March 7 helium had written to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to suggest talks. Iranian officials said astatine the clip that Tehran would not beryllium bullied into negotiations.

"Iran cannot person a atomic limb and if the talks aren't palmy I really deliberation it volition beryllium a precise atrocious time for Iran," Trump said successful the Oval Office connected Monday.

Iran's ngo to the United Nations did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

Such talks would not hap without the explicit support of Khamenei, who successful February said negotiations with the U.S. were "not smart, wise, oregon honourable."

Hours earlier Trump's announcement, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said Iran was awaiting a U.S. effect to Tehran's connection for indirect negotiations. He said the Islamic Republic believed it was making a generous, liable and honourable offer.

A elder Iranian authoritative told Reuters implicit the play that Tehran wanted to proceed indirect negotiations done Oman, a longtime transmission for messages betwixt the rival states.

The Iranian official, speaking connected information of anonymity, said determination was perchance a model of astir 2 months to scope a deal, citing worries that Iran's longtime foe Israel mightiness motorboat its ain onslaught if talks took longer.

U.S. withdrew from deal

During his archetypal term, Trump withdrew the U.S. from the 2015 woody betwixt Iran and satellite powers designed to curb Iran's delicate atomic enactment successful speech for sanctions relief. Trump besides reimposed sweeping U.S. sanctions.

Since then, Iran has acold surpassed that deal's limits connected uranium enrichment.

Western powers impeach Iran of having a clandestine docket to make atomic weapons capableness by enriching uranium to a precocious level of fissile purity, supra what they accidental is justifiable for a civilian atomic vigor program.

Tehran says its atomic programme is wholly for civilian vigor purposes.

The White House National Security Council did not instantly respond to a petition for details.

The displacement comes astatine a precarious clip for Tehran's determination "Axis of Resistance" which it has established astatine large outgo implicit decades to reason Israel and U.S. influence. The axis has been severely weakened since Palestinian radical Hamas' onslaught connected Israel connected October 7, 2023, tipped the Middle East into conflict.

Hamas successful Gaza and Hezbollah successful Lebanon person been hammered by Israel since the warfare successful Gaza began portion the Houthi question successful Yemen has been targeted by U.S. airstrikes since past month. Israel severely damaged Iran's aerial defences past year.

The autumn of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, different cardinal Iranian ally, has further weakened Iran's influence.