White House envoy plans possible meeting with Iranian foreign minister to restart nuclear talks

Steve Witkoff, a White House envoy, is reportedly planning to meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Oslo next week in an effort to revive stalled nuclear negotiations, sources familiar with the discussions said.

While a final date for the meeting has yet to be confirmed and neither the United States nor Iran has publicly acknowledged the potential talks, such a meeting would represent the first direct engagement since President Trump ordered a rare military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities last month, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

"We have no travel announcements at this time," a White House official said, while the Iranian mission to the United Nations declined to comment.

Sources reveal that Witkoff and Araghchi have maintained direct contact both during and following the recent 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran, which concluded with a US-brokered ceasefire. Additionally, mediators from Oman and Qatar have played roles in facilitating communication between the two nations.

Initially, Iran exhibited reluctance to engage with the United States in the immediate aftermath of the conflict, but its stance has reportedly softened in recent weeks. Israeli Channel 12 was the first media outlet to report on the planned meeting.

A central focus of any forthcoming negotiations will be Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, estimated at 400 kilograms enriched to 60 per cent. Israeli and US officials maintain that this material remains “sealed off from the outside world” at the three nuclear sites targeted in the recent strikes—the Natanz and Fordow enrichment facilities, and the underground tunnels at the Isfahan site.

Currently, Iran is unable to access the stockpile due to damage sustained during the attacks, although it could potentially recover the material once the debris is cleared.

Meanwhile, Iran announced earlier this week that it has begun implementing a new parliamentary law suspending all cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). In a post on X, Araghchi emphasized Iran’s continued commitment to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and its Safeguards Agreement.

"In accordance with the new legislation by [parliament], sparked by the unlawful attacks against our nuclear facilities by Israel and the US, our cooperation with the IAEA will be channeled through Iran's Supreme National Security Council for obvious safety and security reasons," he wrote.

By Vafa Guliyeva