Iran-U.S. nuclear talks in Geneva achieve 'significant progress,' mediator says

The Iranian and U.S. delegations wrapped up their third round of talks in Geneva "after significant progress in the negotiation," Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Albusaidi said on Thursday.

"We will resume soon after consultation in the respective capitals. Discussions at the technical level will take place next week in Vienna," he said in a post on X.

Progress made

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi told Iran's state TV that the talks "made very good progress and entered into the elements of an agreement very seriously, both in the nuclear field and in the sanctions field," according to media reports. He added that the two sides may hold a new round of talks within a week. 

Earlier in the day, Albusaidi said both delegations demonstrated "unprecedented openness to new and creative ideas and solutions" in the talks, adding that the efforts are continuing intensively and in a constructive manner.

What was discussed?

During the talks, Iran rejected transferring uranium stockpiles abroad and objected to ending uranium enrichment, dismantling its nuclear facilities and imposing permanent restrictions on its program, according to reports from The Wall Street Journal.

CGTN correspondent Iolo ap Dafydd said Iran and the U.S. disagree on "quite a lot," but negotiations on nuclear matters are where "there might be some concessions by the Iranians."

To avoid an attack by the United States, Iran will have to allow neutral third parties, such as United Nations inspection organizations, to "go in and inspect," ap Dafydd said.

As a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Iran has the right "to actually enrich uranium," ap Dafydd said. "The problem is what it uses it for," he added.

He also pointed to what he described as "contradictory" in U.S. behavior. "It is contradictory, in a way, for the Americans now to have this huge armada in that region and threaten to bomb again, when last June Donald Trump said we bombed the three nuclear sites and we put them back by decades. Obviously, they don't feel like that now," he said.

Iran's missile possession and development are another point of tension between the two countries, with the United States seeking to curb Iran's missile capabilities, according to the correspondent.