Nuclear deal: US envoy to hold talks with 'Iranian foreign minister on Sunday'

WASHINGTON: US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is scheduled to meet Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Oman on Sunday to discuss Tehran’s expected response to Washington’s latest nuclear proposal, a US official said late Wednesday.

The meeting follows Iran’s announcement on Monday that it will soon present a counter-proposal, rejecting the US offer as “unacceptable.” 

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump signalled scepticism, telling a podcast the same day that he is less confident Iran will agree to halt uranium enrichment.

Trump has been seeking a new nuclear deal to place limits on Iran's disputed uranium enrichment activities and has threatened the Islamic Republic with bombing if no agreement is reached.

Iran has long said it has no plans to develop nuclear weapons and is only interested in atomic power generation and other peaceful projects.

During his first White House term, Trump withdrew the US from a 2015 deal between Iran and world powers that placed limits on Tehran's uranium enrichment drive in exchange for relief from international sanctions.

Uneasy relations between Iran and the US go back decades. Tehran says Washington has interfered in its affairs, citing events ranging from a 1953 coup against a prime minister to the 2020 killing of its military commander in a US drone strike.

Washington cites Iran's backing of militant groups in the Middle East including Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen to say that Iran poses a threat to the US ally Israel and Washington's interests in the region.

The militant groups describe themselves as the "Axis of Resistance" to Israeli and US influence in the Middle East.

Trump said on Wednesday the US personnel were being moved out of the Middle East because "it could be a dangerous place."

The decision by the US to evacuate some personnel comes at a volatile moment in the region. Trump's efforts to reach a nuclear deal with Iran appear to be deadlocked and the US intelligence indicates that Israel has been making preparations for a strike against Iran's nuclear facilities.