Logo

US and Iranian officials wrapped up a fresh round of indirect talks in Switzerland Thursday, as President Trump’s deadline to reach an agreement on the future of Tehran’s nuclear program looms as soon as this weekend.

Omani Foreign Minister Bader al-Busaidi, who mediated the discussion, wrote on X at 7:33 p.m. local time (1:33 p.m. ET) that “significant progress” had been made and discussions would resume “soon after consultation in the respective capitals.”

The diplomat did not elaborate on what “progress” had been made, but added that talks “on a technical level will take place next week in Vienna.” The Austrian capital is home to the United Nations nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Iran’s foreign minister separately described the discussions as “one of our most intense and longest rounds of negotiations.”

“What needs to happen has been clearly spelled out from our side,” Abbas Aragchi told Iranian state TV, without offering specifics.


  US special envoy Steve Witkoff (C) and Jared Kushner hold a meeting with Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi (R) in Geneva on Feb. 26, 2026. Omani Foreign Ministry/AFP via Getty Images US special envoy Steve Witkoff (C) and Jared Kushner hold a meeting with Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi (R) in Geneva on Feb. 26, 2026. Omani Foreign Ministry/AFP via Getty Images

There was no immediate response from the White House, but War Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were spotted departing the executive mansion around the time the Geneva talks wrapped up.

Hours earlier, the American and Iranian delegations arrived separately at the Omani diplomatic residence on the shores of Lake Geneva.

Oman’s Foreign Ministry later published images of US special Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, meeting with al-Busaidi over breakfast to go over the Iranian proposals.


  Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (R) shakes hands with Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi before their meeting in Geneva. Iran's Foreign Ministry/AFP via Getty Images Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi (R) shakes hands with Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi before their meeting in Geneva. Iran's Foreign Ministry/AFP via Getty Images

At 1:30 p.m. Geneva time, al-Busaidi posted on X: “We’ve been exchanging creative and positive ideas in Geneva today, and now both US and Iranian negotiators have adjourned for a break. We’ll resume later today. We hope to make more progress.”

Talks resumed around 6 p.m. local time after both delegations returned to the venue.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Witkoff and Kushner have demanded that Iran dismantle three key nuclear sites — at Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz — that were hit by the US this past June and turn over all of its enriched uranium to Washington.

The American side also reportedly has demanded that any agreement be permanent, with none of the so-called “sunset clauses” found in the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.


  The US Navy aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford departs Souda Bay on the island of Crete on February 26, 2026. AFP via Getty Images The US Navy aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford departs Souda Bay on the island of Crete on February 26, 2026. AFP via Getty Images

The outlet later reported that the Iranian side had rejected those demands and it was unclear how flexible Witkoff and Kushner were willing to be.

Thursday’s meeting took place exactly one week after Trump told a meeting of his Board of Peace in Washington that he would decided whether to hit the theocratic regime “over the next, probably, 10 days.

During Tuesday night’s State of the Union address to Congress, the president warned that Iran was “working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America,” among other “sinister designs.”


  The USS Gerald R. Ford is pictured leaving Souda Bay in Greece on Thursday. AFP via Getty Images The USS Gerald R. Ford is pictured leaving Souda Bay in Greece on Thursday. AFP via Getty Images

  Trump has ordered two US aircraft carrier groups into position for possible strikes. AFP via Getty Images Trump has ordered two US aircraft carrier groups into position for possible strikes. AFP via Getty Images

“We are in negotiations with them,” Trump said. “They want to make a deal but we haven’t heard those sacred words: ‘We will never have a nuclear weapon.’”

US officials have pushed to broaden the talks to include discussions of Iran’s ballistic missile program as well as the regime’s killing of thousands of protesters last month — but Tehran has refused to be drawn on those topics.

Ali Shamkhani, a prominent adviser to Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, wrote on X ahead of Thursday’s talks that “[i]f the main issue of the negotiations is Iran’s non-development of nuclear weapons, this is consistent with the Supreme Leader’s fatwa [religious declaration] and Iran’s defense doctrine, and an immediate agreement is within reach.”


  The USS Gerald R. Ford is currently en route to Israel’s Mediterranean coast. AFP via Getty Images The USS Gerald R. Ford is currently en route to Israel’s Mediterranean coast. AFP via Getty Images

Meanwhile, Trump has ordered two US aircraft carrier groups into position for possible strikes. One carrier, the USS Abraham Lincoln, and its accompanying strike group, has been in the Middle East since late January.

A second carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, is currently en route to Israel’s Mediterranean coast from the Greek island of Crete.

Comments
anonymous profile image
Powered by RoundtableBuilt on infrastructure designed for real-time media. Learn more at RTB.io.© Roundtable 2026. By using this site you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy