ABU DHABI: US President Donald Trump on Friday called on Iran to swiftly respond to an American proposal for a new nuclear agreement, warning that failure to act could lead to serious consequences.
Speaking in Abu Dhabi at the end of his Gulf tour, Trump said his administration had submitted a proposal to Iranian officials. “They know they have to move quickly, or something bad is going to happen,” he said.
Trump yesterday said that Iran has “sort of” agreed to the terms of a nuclear deal with the United States. Trump described the latest talks between the two countries, which ended on Sunday, as “very serious negotiations” for “long-term peace”.
Meanwhile, Iran on Tuesday said a recent round of talks with the United States had been “useful” but the imposition of further sanctions by Washington was incompatible with the ongoing diplomatic process and could influence Tehran’s position in future talks.
Iran and the United States concluded another round of nuclear talks in Oman on May 11 with no apparent breakthrough on uranium enrichment, but both sides described the discussions as constructive and confirmed plans for future negotiations.
This was the fourth round of talks that began nearly a month ago, marking the highest-level contact between the two sides since Washington withdrew in 2018 from a landmark nuclear deal, during President Donald Trump’s first term.
In March, President Trump wrote to Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, proposing talks but warning of potential military action if diplomacy failed.
Trump’s maximum pressure policy
Iran adhered to the 2015 nuclear agreement with world powers for a year after Washington’s withdrawal, before beginning to roll back its compliance.
Since returning to the office in January, Trump has revived his “maximum pressure” approach against Tehran, while backing nuclear diplomacy but warning of potential military action if it fails.
The talks are taking place amid renewed scrutiny of key aspects of Tehran’s nuclear programme.
European governments are weighing whether to trigger the “snapback” mechanism under the 2015 deal, which would reinstate UN sanctions in response to Iranian non-compliance — an option that expires in October.
