Mediators Qatar and Oman were told by Iran that Tehran "will not negotiate while under attack", an official briefed on the talks said Sunday, amid a massive exchange of strikes between Israel and the Islamic republic.

Iran has said it will present a counter-proposal to the latest draft from Washington, which it had criticised for failing to offer sanctions relief in return for curbs on its nuclear programme.

In a key sticking point, Iran has insisted on the right to enrich uranium at low levels for civilian use -- as allowed under a 2015 deal negotiated by former president Barack Obama which Trump tore up in his first White House term.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday began a two-day visit to Oman, which is mediating ongoing nuclear talks between Tehran and Washington.

The issue has come into focus in recent weeks, with Iran staunchly defending its right to enrich uranium as part of what it says is a civilian nuclear programme, while the United States wants it to stop.

Tehran, Iran - Long-time adversaries Iran and the United States held a fifth round of Oman-mediated nuclear talks on Friday in Rome, but with no breakthrough reported. However, both sides still described the meeting as constructive and expressed a willingness to continue the discussions. Here are some of the main...

The talks, which began in April, are the highest-level contact between the foes since the United States quit the 2015 nuclear accord during President Donald Trump's first term.

Iran and the United States will hold the next round of talks on the Islamic republic's nuclear programme in Rome later this week, Tehran and mediator Oman said Wednesday.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Thursday that Tehran has no objection to US companies operating in the country, including in the oil and gas sector.

The Istanbul meeting follows Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi's warning of "irreversible" consequences if the European powers move to reimpose United Nations sanctions on Iran that were lifted under a 2015 deal.

The United States announced new sanctions Monday against Iran over its nuclear program, despite ongoing negotiations between the two countries over the sensitive issue.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said ahead of Sunday's meeting that "the negotiations are progressing and, naturally, the further we go, the more consultations and considerations we need" and the more time is required "to review the issues raised".

The United States said Wednesday it was imposing sanctions on seven companies involved in selling Iranian oil, tightening pressure despite new nuclear talks between the adversaries.

Muscat, Oman - The United States and Iran went into detail about a potential nuclear deal Saturday at their third consecutive round of talks, hoping to strike an accord that would ease regional tensions. US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi again led the talks, which...

Witkoff, a businessman friend of Trump who has become his globe-trotting negotiator, last met Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday in Rome, where they reported progress and called for talks among technical teams.

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.

Iran's foreign minister is to visit ally Russia this week to discuss nuclear negotiations with the United States, ahead of a new round of talks planned between the foes.

Analysts had said the US would push to include on the agenda discussions over Iran's ballistic missile programme, along with Tehran's support for the "axis of resistance" -- a network of militant groups opposed to Israel.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who briefly spoke face-to-face with Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff during the indirect meeting in Oman, said the talks would resume next Saturday.

Iran seeks a "real and fair" agreement with Washington on its nuclear programme, a senior aide to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Friday, setting the stage for a diplomatic showdown this weekend in Oman.

Trump made the surprise announcement that his administration would open talks with Iran during a White House meeting on Monday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose country is an arch foe of Tehran.

Western countries including the United States have long accused Iran of pursuing a nuclear weapon, which Tehran has denied, insisting that its enrichment activities are solely for peaceful purposes.

The message was sent to the UN Security Council in a letter by Iran's UN ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani which condemned what he called "warmongering provocations".

Trump's language represented a sharpening of his comment a few days earlier that if Tehran refused to negotiate a new nuclear agreement, "bad, bad things are going to happen to Iran."

"I sent them a letter just recently, and I said: you have to make a decision, one way or the other, and we either have to talk and talk it out or very bad things are going to happen to Iran," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

Iran has sent a response to a letter from US President Donald Trump that called for nuclear talks and warned of possible military action if it refuses, its foreign minister said Thursday.

Iran will conduct a "thorough assessment" before responding to US President Donald Trump's letter urging nuclear talks and warning of possible military action if Tehran refuses, the foreign ministry said Thursday. "The letter was received last night and is currently being reviewed," ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told the official IRNA...

Raisi was referring to sanctions imposed on Iran since the United States torpedoed the nuclear deal in 2018, as well as protests that erupted in September 2022 over a young woman's death in custody.

Iran said it was hoping indirect talks with the United States could lead to a "positive" outcome for a prisoner swap. Iran announced earlier this month that it was engaged in Oman-mediated talks with its arch-nemesis the United States over its nuclear deal and a possible prisoner exchange.

Iran said it has continued indirect negotiations with the Unites States through the Sultanate of Oman over its nuclear deal and a possible prisoner swap. Iran's nuclear program has long been the subject of scrutiny from Western powers, resulting in sanctions that have crippled the country's economy.

Iranian media reports came just days before the board of governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency is due to meet to review progress in addressing the watchdog's remaining concerns. The IAEA had reported the discovery of traces of radioactive material at three sites not declared by Iran as having...

The US Navy demanded the immediate release of the tanker, saying it was transiting international waters in the Gulf of Oman and slammed Iran's "continued harassment of vessels". It is one of a spate of incidents since 2018, when then US president Donald Trump pulled out of a nuke pact...

The degree of anger and sympathy for the protesters, particularly among the American and European public, makes it near impossible to reach a nuclear deal, believes Vali Reza Nasr.

UN nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi is expected in Tehran for discussions with officials after International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors in Iran found uranium particles enriched to just under weapons-grade level. The visit by the head of IAEA comes with the Vienna-based organization seeking to get Iran to increase cooperation...

France agrees that "firmness" is needed in dealings with Iran, a diplomatic source told earlier, saying the nuclear program had reached "a dangerous point" and highlighting Tehran's role in the Ukraine war. Siding with Ukraine is not without risk for Netanyahu, as Russian air defences deployed in neighbouring Syria could...

The hardening EU stance towards Tehran appeared to bury deeper hopes of reviving a 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which has been eroded since then-president Donald Trump withdrew US support in 2018. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has been trying to bring the US and Iran back into full compliance...

State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters that Russia deepening an alliance with Iran is something the whole world, especially those in the region and across the world, frankly should be seeing as a profound threat. Ukrainian officials said that the strikes killed four people in Kyiv and knocked out...

Siamak's brother, Babak Namazi, said in a statement Saturday that Iranian authorities had granted his sibling a further three-day furlough and that he hoped a longer extension would follow.

"Efforts are underway with the European coordinator and other mediators, including the foreign ministries of neighboring countries, to exchange messages to reach an agreement, said Nasser Kanani, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman.

Less than a month after signs emerged of a possible signing of the nuclear deal, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said that negotiations to bring Iran and the US back are in stalemate. He has been the main driver for more than a year to try to revive the...

Iran's latest reply on a nuclear deal is a step "backwards," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday, insisting Washington would not rush to rejoin at any cost. European mediators last month appeared to make progress in restoring the 2015 accord as Iran largely agreed to a proposed final...

Prime Minister Yair Lapid said that Israel's "diplomatic fight" against the deal included its  national security advisor and defense minister holding recent meetings in the United States.

The United States remains adamant that Tehran cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency to clear up suspicions about earlier work at three undeclared sites. In June, the IAEA's board of governors adopted a resolution censuring Iran for failing to adequately explain the previous discovery of traces of enriched uranium...

The United States is expected shortly to respond to Iran through European Union mediators, after a year and a half of indirect diplomacy that just weeks ago looked on the verge of collapsing. US officials said Iran dropped demands to block some UN nuclear inspections after also relaxing on insistence...

A meeting on resurrecting the Iran nuclear deal could be held 'this week' after Tehran submitted its response to an EU proposal, the European Union's top diplomat said Monday. Efforts to revive the JCPOA - the 2015 agreement between world powers and Tehran aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear ambitions -...

The European Union said Tuesday it was studying Iran's response to a "final" draft agreement on reviving a 2015 nuclear accord with major powers it presented at talks in Vienna. The United States had already said Monday that it was informing EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell of its response...

There is no more space for negotiations. We have a final text. So it's the moment for a decision: yes or no. And we expect all participants to take this decision very quickly, a foreign policy spokesman for the bloc, Peter Stano said. Iran has said it is studying the...

Iran said Monday it is examining a "final text" presented by the European Union at the negotiations in Vienna aimed at restoring a 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers. The comments came after a European official said the EU has tabled the "final" version of the text, negotiations...

Iran said Monday it will not be rushed into a "quick" deal reviving its faltering 2015 nuclear accord with world powers, as negotiations remain deadlocked. "They demand that Iran makes a quick decision, (insisting that) time is limited and Iran must respond quickly," foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said at...

French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday told his Iranian counterpart Ebrahim Raisi that reviving the landmark 2015 deal on Tehran's nuclear capabilities was "still possible" but must happen "as soon as possible".