UN Nuclear Watchdog, Iranian Officials Meet in Vienna

Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks during a press conference shortly after the IAEA Board of Governors meeting at the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, Austria on March 1, 2021. (JOE KLAMAR / AFP)
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks during a press conference shortly after the IAEA Board of Governors meeting at the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, Austria on March 1, 2021. (JOE KLAMAR / AFP)
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UN Nuclear Watchdog, Iranian Officials Meet in Vienna

Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks during a press conference shortly after the IAEA Board of Governors meeting at the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, Austria on March 1, 2021. (JOE KLAMAR / AFP)
Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks during a press conference shortly after the IAEA Board of Governors meeting at the agency’s headquarters in Vienna, Austria on March 1, 2021. (JOE KLAMAR / AFP)

The head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog said he met with his Iranian counterpart in Vienna for talks about an ongoing investigation into man made uranium particles found at undeclared sites in Iran.

“Dialogue has restarted with Iran on clarification of outstanding safeguards issues,” Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), tweeted Monday night.

He said he had met with Mohammad Eslami, vice president and head of Iran’s Atomic Energy Organization. Along with the statement, Grossi posted photos of himself, Eslami and other negotiators.

The IAEA has for years sought answers from Iran to its questions about the uranium particles. US intelligence agencies, Western nations and the IAEA have said Iran ran an organized nuclear weapons program until 2003. Iran has long denied ever seeking nuclear weapons, maintaining that its nuclear program is peaceful, reported The Associated Press.

The probe has been a sticking point in negotiations to revive the 2015 deal between the Iranian Republic and world powers. Iran’s hard-line President Ebrahim Raisi said in August that the IAEA’s investigation into the issue must be halted in order for Iran to recommit to the deal.

Earlier this month, a report from the IAEA to member states criticized Iran’s lack of engagement with the IAEA on the issue. Because Iranian leaders had not offered “credible” explanations for the presence of these particles, the report said the IAEA “is not in a position to provide assurance that Iran’s nuclear program is exclusively peaceful.”



Iran FM Araghchi Arrives in Oman Ahead of Nuclear Talks with US

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrives ahead of negotiations with the US, in Muscat, Oman, April 25, 2025. Iranian Foreign Ministry/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuters
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrives ahead of negotiations with the US, in Muscat, Oman, April 25, 2025. Iranian Foreign Ministry/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuters
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Iran FM Araghchi Arrives in Oman Ahead of Nuclear Talks with US

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrives ahead of negotiations with the US, in Muscat, Oman, April 25, 2025. Iranian Foreign Ministry/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuters
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrives ahead of negotiations with the US, in Muscat, Oman, April 25, 2025. Iranian Foreign Ministry/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via Reuters

Iran's top diplomat Abbas Araghchi arrived in Oman on Friday ahead of fresh nuclear talks with the United States, after both sides said progress had been made in previous rounds.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei posted on X that "Araghchi and his accompanying delegation arrived in Muscat for the third round of Iran-US talks".

Iran's Mehr news agency released a brief video showing the foreign minister disembarking from an Iranian government plane in Muscat.

Baqaei said Araghchi would be leading the delegation of diplomats and technical experts in the indirect discussions with the US side.

US President Donald Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, will represent the United States in the talks.

The latest round will include expert-level talks on Iran's nuclear program, with Michael Anton, who serves as the State Department's head of policy planning, leading the technical discussions on the US side, the department said.

Iran's Tasnim news agency reported that deputy foreign ministers Kazem Gharibabadi and Majid Takht-Ravanchi will lead the Iranian technical team.

Baqaei wrote on X that Iran's delegation is "resolved to secure our nation's legitimate and lawful right to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes while taking reasonable steps to demonstrate that our program is entirely peaceful".

"Termination of unlawful and inhumane sanctions in an objective and speedy manner is a priority that we seek to achieve," he added.

According to Baqaei, the dialogue will again be mediated by Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi on Saturday morning.

The meeting follows two earlier rounds of Omani-mediated negotiations in Muscat and Rome starting on April 12.

- Calling for 'goodwill' -

Since his return to office in January, Trump has reimposed sweeping sanctions under his policy of "maximum pressure" against Tehran.

In March, he sent a letter to Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei calling for talks but warning of possible military action if they failed to produce a deal.

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 program is for peaceful civilian purposes.

Baqaei earlier Friday said "progress in the negotiations requires the demonstration of goodwill, seriousness, and realism by the other side".

Iran will treat Saturday's talks seriously, Araghchi said in a recent interview, "and if the other party also enters seriously, there is potential for progress".

In 2018, Trump withdrew the United States from a nuclear deal signed three years earlier between Tehran and major world powers. The agreement eased sanctions on Iran in return for curbs on its nuclear program.

After Trump's pullout, Tehran complied with the agreement for a year before scaling back its compliance.

Iran currently enriches uranium up to 60 percent, far above the 3.67 percent limit in the 2015 deal but still below the 90 percent threshold required for weapons-grade material.

In an interview published by Time Magazine on Friday, Trump said the United States will "lead the pack" in attacking Iran if nuclear talks do not lead to a new deal.

But he expressed hope that an agreement could be reached and said he would be willing to meet Khamenei.