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Middle East powers are working to arrange a meeting between the US and Iran as the Islamic republic signals that it is preparing to hold negotiations with the Trump administration in the coming days.
Diplomats said any talks would initially focus solely on Iran’s nuclear programme, and not other issues such as the republic’s ballistic missile arsenal or its support for regional militant groups.
Turkey, Qatar, Oman and Egypt are coordinating to arrange the talks after regional powers have intensified diplomatic efforts to avert a war between the US and Iran after President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened the Islamic regime and deployed an aircraft carrier strike group to the region.
The diplomats added that a meeting between the US and Iran had not yet been confirmed as the details were still being worked out, but one said they were expected on Friday, most likely in Turkey.
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday that Tehran hoped “that the diplomatic efforts reach a conclusion in the coming days”.
He added that the timing, location and composition of Iran’s delegation were still to be worked out.
However, it was the clearest signal yet from Iran that it was ready to engage with the Trump administration after weeks of belligerent rhetoric from both sides.
Fars, a state-affiliated news agency, said Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had “issued the order to begin negotiations” with Washington within a strictly nuclear framework.
On Monday the US president reposted a news story on his Truth Social network with the headline “Trump open to Iran deal as US bolsters forces in Middle East”.
The US had previously demanded that Tehran agree to permanently end all uranium enrichment, accept limits on its ballistic missile programme and halt its support for regional militant groups, according to diplomats and analysts. The White House declined to comment.
Iranian officials had said they were prepared for negotiations, but only on the nuclear issue, and not if they were expected to capitulate to Trump’s demands.
Iran, which insists its nuclear programme is for civilian purposes, has consistently rejected demands that it agree to end all uranium enrichment, saying that it is Tehran’s right as a signatory to the non-proliferation treaty. Officials added their ballistic missile programme was not up for negotiation.
Trump has repeatedly said that Iran’s nuclear programme was “obliterated” after the US bombed its main nuclear enrichment facilities when it briefly joined Israel’s 12-day war against the republic in June.
But the fate of Iran’s 408kg of highly enriched uranium has remained a concern for western powers.
Iranian media has reported that Tehran could be willing to hand over the stockpile to a third country as part of a deal with the US. Baghaei, the foreign ministry spokesman, said it was an issue to be discussed in the talks — and not in advance.
Trump has been threatening Iran with military action since mass protests erupted in the republic in December. The regime crushed the demonstrations in a brutal crackdown in which thousands of people were killed, after which the US began deploying additional military assets to the region and stepping up its threats to the regime.
Last week, Trump warned that time was “running out” for Iran to do a deal, but at the weekend he said Tehran was negotiating “seriously” with the US over its nuclear programme.
He added that Tehran should embrace an agreement “with no nuclear weapons”.
“I don’t know that they will, but they are talking to us, seriously talking to us,” Trump said.
Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said on Monday that he hoped the country would “soon see the fruits of diplomacy”. However, he added that diplomacy “has its own manners”, citing the need for mutual respect and the recognition of national interests.
Iranian media have speculated that any talks will involve Araghchi and the US envoy Steve Witkoff.
The pair previously held several rounds of indirect nuclear talks last year before Israel launched its attack on Iran in June, but have since kept a communication channel open.
Iranian officials remain deeply wary and have repeatedly warned that the republic is prepared for war if the US or Israel attacks it.
Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi, chief of the joint armed forces, said Iran’s defence doctrine had shifted towards a more offensive posture following the June war, adding that its forces were ready to respond “quickly and decisively”.
Additional reporting by John Paul Rathbone in Istanbul, Abigail Hauslohner in Washington and James Shotter in Jerusalem