Talks between Iran and the U.S. will move to the “expert level” next week, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said, following the second round of indirect negotiations with President Donald Trump’s chief negotiator Steve Witkoff in Rome on Saturday.
Saturday’s negotiations marked the progression of high-stakes talks between Iranian and U.S. officials, as Trump seeks to secure a new deal to halt Iran’s nuclear development program — the alternative to which, he has warned, could result in military action.
Iran’s foreign minister indicated on Saturday that talks were continuing, saying that negotiations would move to the next phase with technical talks held at the “expert level” on Wednesday. Araghchi added that he and Witkoff would conduct a third round of indirect negotiations next Saturday after the start of this week’s technical discussions.
A State Department spokesperson on Saturday confirmed that both sides had agreed to continue negotiations next week.
“Today, in Rome over four hours in our second round of talks, we made very good progress in our direct and indirect discussions. We agreed to meet again next week and are grateful to our Omani partners for facilitating these talks and to our Italian partners for hosting us today,” the spokesperson said.
Representatives from Oman have served as a go-between for the indirect talks, shuttling messages back and forth between Witkoff and Araghchi. At the end of last week’s session in Muscat, which lasted more than two hours, Witkoff and Araghchi briefly spoke directly, both sides said.
Speaking to Iranian state television, Araghchi said that “negotiations are moving forward,” and added that the two officials were able to reach a “better understanding about a series of principles and goals.”
A statement from the mediating Omani Foreign Ministry outlined further details about the talks.
The two officials “have agreed to enter into the next phase of their discussions that aim to seal a fair, enduring and binding deal which will ensure Iran completely free of nuclear weapons and sanctions, and maintaining its ability to develop peaceful nuclear energy,” the Omani statement read.
In a separate post, Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi thanked Witkoff and Araghchi for their “highly constructive approach” to the negotiations, saying: “These talks are gaining momentum and now even the unlikely is possible.”
Trump last month sent a letter to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei issuing a 60-day ultimatum to make progress on nuclear negotiations, or Iran would face military consequences. The president — who abandoned the 2015 nuclear pact with Iran during his first term in favor of a “maximum pressure” sanctions campaign — has repeatedly warned that Iran “can’t have a nuclear weapon.”
Iran has since significantly ramped up its nuclear development, with experts warning that the country is dangerously close to nuclear breakout.
Witkoff appeared to briefly stray from the administration’s hard line this week, indicating to Fox News on Monday that the U.S. only sought to cap Iran’s uranium enrichment program, not eliminate it. The special envoy later backtracked, reiterating Trump’s position that “Iran must stop and eliminate its nuclear enrichment and weaponization program.”
Last week’s talks, where Witkoff and Araghchi spoke directly, marked the first known direct engagement between Iranian and U.S. officials under the Trump administration.
