The next round of nuclear talks between Iran and the United States will be held on Saturday in Italy and not Oman, Iranian state media reported.
"The second round of Iran-US nuclear talks will be held next Saturday in Rome... and the Omani foreign ministry will be hosting the talks," Iran's state TV said.
European officials had earlier said the talks would be held in Rome, but Iranian officials had insisted they would be held in Oman.
Also on Wednesday, a spokesman for the Italian foreign ministry confirmed to AFP that the talks would be held in Rome.
Iran's foreign ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baqaei, in a post on X, appeared to criticize the changing of the location of the talks.
"In diplomacy, such a move, promoted by extremist elements lacking an understanding of logic or the art of reasonable negotiation, can jeopardize any beginning," he said, adding that it can "be seen as a lack of seriousness and good faith."
The first round of talks, held last Saturday in Oman's capital, Muscat, was led by US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
‘Not Far’ from a Bomb
Iran is not far from having an atomic bomb, the head of the UN nuclear watchdog was quoted as saying in a Le Monde interview published Wednesday, just hours before a visit to Tehran.
International Atomic Energy Agency head Rafael Grossi said Iran still had a way to go before getting the bomb but added, “They're not far from it, you have to acknowledge.”
Grossi likened the development of a nuclear weapon to a jigsaw puzzle, adding that Iran “has the pieces and they could eventually put them together one day.
Grossi was due in Iran later Wednesday for talks with senior officials.
The UN watchdog was tasked with overseeing Iran's compliance with the 2015 nuclear deal that fell apart after Donald Trump withdrew from it during his first term as US president.
AFP
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