Discussions held amid US naval buildup and Iranian announcement of live-fire exercises in straits of Hormuz
A fresh round of indirect nuclear talks in Geneva between Iran and the US, focusing on the terms for Tehran constraining its nuclear programme under the supervision of the UN nuclear weapons inspectorate, ended after just over four hours, Iranian state media reported.
The talks were held against a backdrop of a now-familiar slew of contradictory messages from Donald Trump, in which he said he believed Iran wanted a deal but also highlighted the US naval military buildup in the region.
Oman continued to act as the mediator, exchanging messages that have not stopped since the first round of this phase of talks started in the country on 6 February.
Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, responded to the presence of US warships off the coast of Oman – across the Gulf from Iran – by saying the US could not destroy the Islamic Republic and appearing to threaten the vessels.
