Rabia Iclal Turan, Ahmet Dursun and Serdar Dincel
May 11, 2025•Update: May 11, 2025
WASHINGTON / TEHRAN
The US and Iran concluded the fourth round of diplomatic talks in the Omani capital Muscat on Sunday, officials from both sides confirmed.
High-level diplomatic discussions, attended by Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump’s senior adviser and special envoy, lasted more than three hours and included both direct and indirect exchanges, according to a senior US official quoted by several US media outlets.
The talks were mediated by Oman.
“We are encouraged by today's outcome and look forward to our next meeting, which will happen in the near future,” the official said, adding that the two sides agreed to continue talks to work through technical elements.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei also confirmed the conclusion of the talks, describing them as “difficult but useful.”
“The fourth round of indirect Iran-U.S. negotiations is concluded; difficult but useful talks to better understand each other's positions and to find reasonable & realistic ways to address the differences,” Baqaei said in a statement on X, adding that the next round will be coordinated and announced by Oman.
Negotiation process between Iran, US
US President Donald Trump, who unilaterally withdrew his country from the nuclear deal with Iran in 2018, sent a letter to Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in March calling for direct nuclear talks with Iran and including threats.
Iran responded to the letter via Oman.
Following the letter traffic, Tehran and Washington first held indirect talks in Oman on April 12, then in Rome and again in Oman, one week apart.
Both Tehran and Washington reported that progress was being made in the talks.
Iran wants sanctions to be lifted in exchange for restrictions on its nuclear program that will prevent it from producing an atomic bomb.
US officials, who have previously said they would accept Tehran's low-level uranium enrichment, have recently stated that they are demanding that Iran stop all levels of uranium enrichment.
Witkoff said in an interview that Iran should never have a uranium enrichment program and that this is a "red line" for the US.
