Iran, US See Hope for Progress After Fifth Round of Nuclear Talks

Members of the Iranian delegation leave the Omani embassy, where the fifth round of US-Iran talks takes place, in Rome, Italy, May 23, 2025. (Reuters)
Members of the Iranian delegation leave the Omani embassy, where the fifth round of US-Iran talks takes place, in Rome, Italy, May 23, 2025. (Reuters)
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Iran, US See Hope for Progress After Fifth Round of Nuclear Talks

Members of the Iranian delegation leave the Omani embassy, where the fifth round of US-Iran talks takes place, in Rome, Italy, May 23, 2025. (Reuters)
Members of the Iranian delegation leave the Omani embassy, where the fifth round of US-Iran talks takes place, in Rome, Italy, May 23, 2025. (Reuters)

Iranian and US delegations wrapped up a fifth round of talks in Rome on Friday and signs of some limited progress emerged in the negotiations aimed at resolving a decades-long dispute over Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

Despite both Washington and Tehran taking a tough stance in public ahead of the talks on Iran's uranium enrichment, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said there was potential for progress after Oman made several proposals during the talks.

"We have just completed one of the most professional rounds of talks ... We firmly stated Iran's position ... The fact that we are now on a reasonable path, in my view, is itself a sign of progress," Araqchi told state TV. "The proposals and solutions will be reviewed in respective capitals ... and the next round of talks will be scheduled accordingly."

A senior US official said the talks lasted more than two hours and were both direct and indirect with Omani mediators.

"The talks continue to be constructive. We made further progress, but there is still work to be done. Both sides agreed to meet again in the near future. We are grateful to our Omani partners for their continued facilitation," the official said.

The stakes are high for both sides. President Donald Trump wants to curtail Tehran's potential to produce a nuclear weapon that could trigger a regional nuclear arms race and perhaps threaten Israel. Tehran, for its part, wants to be rid of devastating sanctions on its oil-based economy.

Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said on X the talks between Araqchi and Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff had ended "with some but not conclusive progress".

Ahead of the talks, Araqchi wrote on X: "Zero nuclear weapons = we Do have a deal. Zero enrichment = we do NOT have a deal. Time to decide."

Among remaining stumbling blocks are Tehran's refusal to ship abroad its entire stockpile of highly enriched uranium - possible raw material for nuclear bombs - or engage in discussions over its ballistic missile program.

Diplomats have said reaching a concrete deal before the summer would technically be impossible given the complexities of an accord. In the meantime, a senior Iranian official involved in nuclear talks with the US said "if Washington drops its 'zero enrichment' demand, a political agreement is feasible."

STUMBLING BLOCKS

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that Washington was working to reach an accord that would allow Iran to have a civil nuclear energy program but not enrich uranium, while acknowledging that this "will not be easy".

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who has the last say on matters of state, rejected demands to stop refining uranium as "excessive and outrageous", warning that such talks were unlikely to yield results.

Iran says it is ready to accept some limits on enrichment, but needs watertight guarantees that Washington would not renege on a future nuclear accord.

Trump in his first term in 2018 ditched a 2015 nuclear pact between major powers and Iran. Since returning to office this year, he has restored a "maximum pressure" campaign on Tehran and reimposed sweeping US sanctions that continue to hobble the Iranian economy.

Iran responded by escalating enrichment far beyond the 2015 pact's limits.

Wendy Sherman, a former US undersecretary who led the US negotiating team that reached the 2015 agreement, earlier said that Tehran presents enrichment as a matter of sovereignty.

"I don't think it is possible to get a deal with Iran where they literally dismantle their program, give up their enrichment, even though that would be ideal," she told Reuters.

The cost of failure of the talks could be high. Iran's arch-foe Israel sees Iran's nuclear program as an existential threat and says it would never allow the clerical establishment to obtain nuclear weapons. Tehran says it has no such ambitions and the purposes are purely civilian.

Israel's strategic affairs minister and the head of its foreign intelligence service, Mossad, were also due to be in Rome for talks with the US negotiators, a source aware of the matter told Reuters.

Araqchi said on Thursday that Washington would bear legal responsibility if Israel attacked Iranian nuclear installations, following a CNN report that Israel might be preparing strikes. 



Congregation Flees after Arsonist Sets Fire to an Australian Synagogue Door

05 July 2025, Australia, Melbourne: Damage is seen on the exterior of the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation in Melbourne. Photo: James Ross/AAP/dpa
05 July 2025, Australia, Melbourne: Damage is seen on the exterior of the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation in Melbourne. Photo: James Ross/AAP/dpa
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Congregation Flees after Arsonist Sets Fire to an Australian Synagogue Door

05 July 2025, Australia, Melbourne: Damage is seen on the exterior of the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation in Melbourne. Photo: James Ross/AAP/dpa
05 July 2025, Australia, Melbourne: Damage is seen on the exterior of the East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation in Melbourne. Photo: James Ross/AAP/dpa

An arsonist set fire to the door of a Melbourne synagogue and forced the congregation to flee on Friday, seven months after criminals destroyed a synagogue in the same Australian city with an accelerant-fueled blaze that left a worshipper injured.

A man doused the double front doors of the downtown East Melbourne Hebrew Congregation and set it alight around 8 p.m., a police statement said on Saturday. Around 20 worshippers sharing a meal to mark the Shabbat Jewish day of rest evacuated through a rear door and no one was injured, police said.

Fire fighters extinguished the blaze which was contained to the front entrance, police said.

Victoria Premier Jacinta Allan said both incidents were designed to “traumatize Jewish families.”

“Any attack on a place of worship is an act of hate, and any attack on a Jewish place of worship is an act of antisemitism,” she said in a statement.

Antisemitic attacks roil Australia since 2023 A wave of antisemitic attacks has roiled Australia since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas assault on Israel triggered the war in Gaza.

Jewish and Muslim organizations and hate researchers have recorded drastic spikes in hate-fueled incidents on both groups. The Australian government last year appointed special envoys to combat antisemitism and Islamophobia in the community.

Last December, two masked men struck the Adass Israel Synagogue in Melbourne’s southeast. They caused extensive damage by spreading a liquid accelerant with brooms throughout the building before igniting it. A worshipper sustained minor burns.

No charges have been laid for that attack, which Prime Minister Anthony Albanese blamed on antisemitism.

The Victorian Joint Counter-Terrorism Team, which includes Victoria state police, federal police and Australia’s main domestic spy agency, said the fire was likely a politically-motivated attack.

Police say synagogue attack is a serious crime

Acting Victoria Police Commander Zorka Dunstan described the latest synagogue fire as a serious crime. Police released a CCTV image of a suspect.

“I’d like to make it very clear that we do recognize that these crimes are disgusting and abhorrent. But at this stage, we are not declaring this a terrorist incident,” Dunstan told reporters.

“In the course of our investigation, we will examine the intent and the ideology of the persons involved, or person, to determine if this is in fact terrorism. At the moment, we are categorizing it as a serious criminal incident and responding accordingly,” she added.

A terrorism declaration opens the investigation to more resourcing and can result in charges that carry longer prison sentences.

The synagogue’s president, Danny Segal, called for the wider Australian community to stand with his congregation.

“We’re here to be in peace, you know, we’re here for everybody to live together and we’ve got a fresh start in Australia, such a beautiful country, and what they're doing is just not fair and not right, and as Australians, we should stand up and everybody should stand up,” Segal told reporters.

Protesters harass diners in Israeli-owned restaurant

Also in downtown Melbourne on Friday night, around 20 masked protesters harassed diners in an Israeli-owned restaurant. A Miznon restaurant window was broken. A 28-year-old woman was arrested for hindering police.

Anti-Defamation Commission chair Dvir Abramovich, a leading opponent of antisemitism in Australia, said diners were terrorized as the group chanted “Death to the IDF,” referring to the Israeli army.

“Melbourne, for one night, stopped being a safe place for Jews,” Abramovich said.

Melbourne Lord Mayor Nicholas Reece condemned both the synagogue and restaurant incidents.

“These criminal acts against a Melbourne synagogue and an Israeli business are absolutely shocking,” Reece said. “All of us as a community need to stand up against it.”

Israel’s deputy foreign minister condemned the attacks, saying it was “yet another reminder of how far racist, antisemitic hate crimes have spread in the heart of Australia,” in a statement on X.

Sharren Haskel expressed her full solidarity with the Jewish community in Melbourne, “Israel stands with you,” she said in the statement.