DUBAI: Iran and the United States will resume nuclear talks on Friday in Turkey, Iranian and US officials told Reuters on Monday, while a regional diplomat said representatives from countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt would participate.
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi will meet in Istanbul in an effort to revive diplomacy over a long-running dispute about Iran’s nuclear programme and dispel fears of a new regional war.
Turkey and other regional allies have sought de-escalation. “Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Egypt, as well as some other countries, will attend the Istanbul meeting. There will be bilateral, trilateral and other meetings,” the diplomat said.
Meanwhile, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has ordered the start of nuclear talks with the United States, local media said Monday, after US leader Donald Trump said he was hopeful of a deal to avert military action against the Islamic republic.
“President Pezeshkian has ordered the opening of talks with the United States” on Iran’s nuclear programme, the Fars news agency reported on Monday, citing an unnamed government source. The report was also carried by the government newspaper Iran and the reformist daily Shargh.
