The Swiss ministry did not specify on which days the talks will occur, but Oman will act as a mediator like it did before.
The United States is conducting a second round of talks with Iran over its nuclear program later this week, the Swiss Foreign Ministry said on Feb. 14.
Hamid Ghanbari, Iranian foreign ministry deputy director for economic diplomacy, said Tehran is pursuing a nuclear deal with Washington that would benefit both nations economically.
“For the sake of an agreement’s durability, it is essential that the U.S. also benefits in areas with high and quick economic returns,” Ghanbari said on Sunday, days before the planned summit in Geneva, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.
The Swiss ministry said Oman, which oversaw the first round of indirect talks between the United States and Iran on Feb. 6, will mediate this week’s summit.
After the previous round of talks, U.S. President Donald Trump warned that if Iran fails to reach an agreement with the United States, it would be “very traumatic” for the regime, which plunged its citizens into an internet blackout throughout the past month and a half amid the nation’s largest wave of protests since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Trump has also suggested Iran could face grave repercussions if the regime continues killing protesters.
Increasing pressure on Tehran to strike a deal, Washington recently dispatched a second aircraft carrier to the region at the threat of another potential military campaign following last year’s blows to Iran’s nuclear facilities.
While Iran has threatened to retaliate against any additional U.S. attacks, Ghanbari’s tone on Sunday was more conciliatory than the regime’s previous statements.
“Common interests in the oil and gas fields, joint fields, mining investments, and even aircraft purchases are included in the negotiations,” Ghanbari said.
The official argued that 2015’s Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action—a nuclear deal between Iran and multiple world powers that eased sanctions on Tehran in exchange for limits on its nuclear program—had not secured America’s economic interests.
Trump is prioritizing diplomacy and a negotiated deal between Washington and Tehran, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at a news conference in Bratislava.
“No one’s ever been able to do a successful deal with Iran, but we’re going to try,” Rubio added.
Trump pulled the United States out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action in 2018 and reimposed strict economic sanctions on Iran.
By Jacob Burg
