The United States is preparing to resume negotiations with Iran, with the main emphasis of the future dialogue to be placed on Tehran's nuclear program. This is reported by CNN, citing its sources.
According to the information, Washington has notified the Persian Gulf states of its intentions. The issue of restoring shipping through the Strait of Hormuz will not be among the main topics of the upcoming talks, the television station said.
Against this backdrop, new tensions have arisen around the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Bloomberg reported that Austrian authorities, with the support of the United States, have denied entry to the head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Mohammad Eslami, who is also the country's vice president. He was supposed to participate in an IAEA conference in Vienna.
The case is particularly sensitive because of the IAEA's role in monitoring Iran's nuclear program. Access to Iranian nuclear sites by international inspectors has been a contentious issue between Tehran and the international community for months.
In parallel with the US plans to resume talks, regional diplomatic contacts are also developing.
Tehran and Oman have agreed to postpone the meeting between Iran and the Persian Gulf states. Muscat traditionally plays the role of mediator between Iran and Western countries and has already participated in a number of diplomatic initiatives.
The development shows that a complex diplomatic picture is taking shape around Iran. On the one hand, Washington is signaling a willingness to return to negotiations on the nuclear program. On the other, relations between Tehran and international institutions remain tense.
For the US, the key issue remains ensuring that Iran's nuclear program will not be used to develop nuclear weapons. Tehran, for its part, insists on its right to peaceful nuclear energy and rejects attempts to limit this right outside of agreed international mechanisms.
A possible resumption of negotiations could open a new diplomatic channel between Washington and Tehran. However, it will take place against a backdrop of serious mistrust and unresolved issues surrounding IAEA inspectors' access to Iranian nuclear sites.
That is why the next diplomatic moves will show whether the parties are truly ready to move from mutual accusations to a new agreement on Iran's nuclear program.