Iran, Oman Discuss Nuclear Talks

Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi with Iran's chief negotiator Ali Bagheri-Kani (ONA)
Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi with Iran's chief negotiator Ali Bagheri-Kani (ONA)
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Iran, Oman Discuss Nuclear Talks

Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi with Iran's chief negotiator Ali Bagheri-Kani (ONA)
Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi with Iran's chief negotiator Ali Bagheri-Kani (ONA)

Oman's Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi discussed with Iran's chief negotiator Ali Bagheri-Kani the latest developments on the nuclear agreement known as the "Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action" (JCPOA).

The Iranian Foreign Ministry issued a statement carried out by the state-run Agency (ISNA), saying Bagheri-Kani held consultations with Busaidi on regional and bilateral developments and follow-up on the agreements signed during the visit of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi to Muscat.

According to Oman News Agency (ONA), the two sides reviewed relations of cooperation between Oman and Iran.

They also discussed several regional and international matters of common interest, particularly the developments regarding the return to the nuclear deal, ONA reported.

The meeting stressed the importance of this deal in maintaining regional security and stability.

This is Bagheri-Kani's second foreign visit within a week, after his unannounced trip to Moscow, in the first diplomatic move after the failure of the latest rounds of talks in Doha.

Earlier, Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani held talks with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdollahian and the Secretary-General of Iran's National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani, on the nuclear negotiations.

Abdollahian said Iran is making no demands outside the parameters of its 2015 nuclear deal, asserting: "We have no requirement which goes beyond the nuclear agreement -- contrary to certain claims by the US party in the media."

He noted that the recent talks in Doha focused on the issue of guarantees, stating: "During the recent talks in Doha, one of the main questions we focused on was an effective guarantee from Washington assuring us of economic advantages linked to the agreement."

Iranian lawmaker Mahmoud Abbaszadeh criticized the Iranian Foreign Ministry for the lack of results in the Doha talks.

Abbaszadeh, the spokesman of the parliamentary National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, downplayed Abdollahian's statement about Tehran's "positive" assessment of the last round, noting that the US special envoy to Iran, Rob Malley, described it as a "waste of time."

"We could have worked better in Doha," said the lawmaker, adding: "We did not enter into the Doha talks with a calculated plan and a road map."

"The reason is that our foreign diplomacy apparatus does not have a well-prepared road map in this regard," said Abbaszadeh.



Russia Detains German Man Accused of Blowing up Gas Distribution Pipe

A military vehicle in Kaliningrad. (Reuters file)
A military vehicle in Kaliningrad. (Reuters file)
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Russia Detains German Man Accused of Blowing up Gas Distribution Pipe

A military vehicle in Kaliningrad. (Reuters file)
A military vehicle in Kaliningrad. (Reuters file)

Russia has detained a German citizen on suspicion of explosives-smuggling and terrorism, accusing him of blowing up a pipe at a gas distribution station, the Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Wednesday.

The FSB said the man, whom it named as Nikolai Gaiduk, had been involved in the attack in Russia's Kaliningrad Baltic Sea exclave in March, using a home-made bomb.

It said he was arrested during a subsequent attempt to enter Kaliningrad from Poland, when authorities searched his car and found 0.5 liters of liquid explosive.

The FSB said Gaiduk was born in 1967 and lives in Hamburg. It accused him of acting on the instructions of a Ukrainian man also living in the north German city.

"Currently, measures are being taken to identify and bring to justice the persons who assisted Gaiduk ... in carrying out illegal activities," the agency said.

The German foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

According to Russia's emergencies ministry, the pipe explosion in March caused a fire but there were no casualties.