Iran says fourth round of nuclear talks with US ‘postponed’

TEHRAN: Iran´s foreign ministry said on Thursday that the fourth round of nuclear talks with the United States has been postponed, after mediator Oman cited “logistical reasons” for the delay.

Tehran and Washington were scheduled to meet for a fourth round of talks on Saturday in Rome, after the two sides reported progress in previous rounds.

“The next round of indirect Iran-US talks, which were scheduled to be held in Rome on Saturday... has been postponed,” Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said in a statement.

He added the decision was based on the proposal by Oman of and that “the next possible date will be announced later.” Earlier, Oman´s top diplomat Badr Albusaidi cited “logistical reasons” for the delay.

“For logistical reasons we are rescheduling the US-Iran meeting provisionally planned for Saturday May 3. New dates will be announced when mutually agreed,” he said on X.

A source familiar with the talks said the United States “never confirmed its participation” in the fourth round meant for Saturday.

On Friday, Iranian diplomats were due to meet with representatives from Germany, Britain, and France in Rome ahead of talks with the US. It remains unclear whether these talks will be held as scheduled.

The Iran-US talks mediated by Oman, which began on April 12, have been the highest-level contact in years since US President Donald Trump abandoned a nuclear accord with world powers in 2018.

Since returning to office, Trump has revived his “maximum pressure” approach against Tehran.

In March, he wrote to Iran´s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei proposing talks but warning of potential military action if diplomacy failed.

Western countries including the United States have long accused Iran of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons -- an allegation Tehran has consistently denied, insisting that its programme is for peaceful civilian purposes.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said all purchases of Iranian oil or petrochemical products must stop and any country or person buying any from the country would be immediately subject to secondary sanctions.”They will not be allowed to do business with the United States of America in any way, shape, or form,” he wrote on Truth Social on Thursday.

Trump’s administration has targeted Tehran with a series of sanctions on entities including a China-based crude oil storage terminal and an independent refiner it has accused of being involved in illicit trade in oil and petrochemicals.

Analysts have said that to really crack down on Iran’s oil exports the US would have to impose secondary sanctions on entities such as Chinese banks that facilitate the purchases of Iranian oil. China is the largest buyer of Iranian crude.