A fourth round of talks between the United States and Iran, which was due to take place in Rome on Saturday, has been postponed.
A new date, according a senior Iranian official, who spoke to reporters on Thursday, will be set depending on the US approach.
“U.S. sanctions on Iran during the nuclear talks are not helping the sides to resolve the nuclear dispute through diplomacy. Depending on the U.S. approach, the date of the next round of talks will be announced,”; the official said.
DAILY POST reports that Iran had earlier accused the US of contradictory behaviour and provocative statements after Washington warned Tehran of consequences for backing Yemen’s Houthis and imposed new oil-related sanctions on it in the midst of nuclear talks.
On Thursday, Oman, which mediated earlier sessions of US-Iran talks, said that the next round of the nuclear discussions provisionally planned for May 3 would be rescheduled for logistical reasons.
According to Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Tehran will continue to engage seriously and resolutely in result-oriented negotiations with the US.
Washington and Tehran are said to have been conducting negotiations over the past month on a deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program in return for the lifting of financial sanctions.
Recall that Washington on Wednesday imposed sanctions on entities it accused of involvement in the illicit trade of Iranian oil and petrochemicals.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned Iran that it would face consequences for supporting the Houthis, who control northern Yemen and have attacked ships in the Red Sea in what the group says is solidarity with the Palestinians.
Washington has reportedly been bombing the Houthis intensively since mid-March, hitting more than 1,000 targets.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei criticised the contradictory approach of American decision-makers and their lack of goodwill and seriousness in advancing the path of diplomacy.
“The responsibility for the consequences and destructive effects of the contradictory behaviour and provocative statements of American officials regarding Iran will lie with the American side,”; Baghaei said.
