Oman Negotiations Redux

As U.S. and Iranian representatives gather in Oman for renewed negotiations, the persistent shadow of war lingers over the region.

• February 4: Following rumors of a cancellation of indirect negotiations between the United States and Iran, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi wrote on X:
  • “Nuclear talks with the United States are scheduled to be held in Muscat on about 10 am Friday.”
• February 5: Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-affiliated Tasnim News Agency, quoting “an informed source,” reported:
  • “It is clear that the issue is not a change in the location of the negotiations. The Americans are constantly changing their own statements. Diplomacy and negotiation require consistency of position and seriousness, not continual shifts in stance under the influence of warmongering currents affiliated with Israel.”
• February 5: Nour News Agency, official outlet of the Supreme National Security Council, discussed conflicting reports concerning the negotiations:
  • “What has occurred during this period can be explained within the framework of a ‘war of wills,’ a familiar pattern in U.S. strategic behavior that relies on psychological pressure, contradictory signals, and playing with the other side’s expectations. In this method, before any real change takes place at the negotiating table, an effort is made to push the opposing party toward reconsidering its positions or expanding the scope of concessions by creating doubt and mental instability. The main instrument at this stage is not the text of an agreement but rather the text of news and media interpretation.”
• February 5: A report by IRGC mouthpiece Mashregh News about U.S.-Iran negotiations concluded:
  • “The United States will seek to avoid war in the course of the negotiations in Oman, because Tehran views all U.S. interests in the region as strategic and vulnerable targets.”
  • “Despite pressure from Kushner and the Israeli lobby, these talks are indirect and solely about the nuclear issue, with no other component placed on the discussion table.”
  • “Trump was inclined to hold talks with the president of Iran and take a commemorative photo; however, dialogue was arranged instead between Araghchi and Witkoff.”
  • “If the negotiations fail, Iran has other cards to play, but Trump has placed only a single card in his pocket, which has left this gambler unsettled.”

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