Daijiworld Media Network - Washington

Washington, Apr 13: In a major diplomatic thaw, the United States and Iran resumed high-level talks in Muscat, Oman, marking their first official engagement since the US unilaterally exited the 2015 nuclear deal under President Donald Trump.

The White House on Saturday described the talks as ‘very positive and constructive’. The discussions featured Trump’s Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, with Omani Foreign Minister Said Badr hosting the meeting.

This renewed contact comes after years of diplomatic deadlock that began in 2018 when Trump withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JAPOA), originally signed by the Obama administration along with other UN Security Council members and Germany.

Witkoff, according to a White House statement, conveyed President Trump’s willingness to resolve differences through “dialogue and diplomacy,” and thanked Oman for facilitating the crucial meeting. “This is a step forward toward a mutually beneficial outcome,” the statement read, confirming another round of talks is scheduled for next Saturday.

Iran’s state-run media acknowledged the meeting, calling it a ‘brief but significant’ interaction the first of its kind at this level in years.

President Trump, speaking aboard Air Force One, reiterated his stand: “I want Iran to be a wonderful, great, happy country, but they can’t have a nuclear weapon.”