Israel is urging the administration of US President Donald Trump to consider a military scenario to resolve the problem in the event of a failure of talks with Iran on the nuclear program, reports the Axios portal.
According to the portal's sources, the White House special envoy Stephen Witkoff has informed the Israeli Minister of Strategic Planning Ron Dermer about the results of the first round of talks with Iranian officials in the Omani capital Muscat.
According to Axios, Israel is “highly skeptical“ about the likelihood of an agreement on the Iranian nuclear program. Tehran, in turn, has expressed concerns that Washington could withdraw from the treaty again, as it did in 2018.
The sources said that Witkoff also discussed the first phase of the negotiations with officials from the Persian Gulf states, while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi informed his counterparts from Qatar, Kuwait and Egypt about the first results.
On April 12, talks between representatives of Tehran and Washington were held in Oman to resolve the situation surrounding Iran's nuclear program. The Iranian delegation was led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, and the American delegation was led by the president's special envoy Stephen Witkoff. According to Tehran, the meeting was held "constructively and in a calm atmosphere", with the parties agreeing to continue consultations.
The second round of talks could take place in the Italian capital Rome, Axios claims, citing its sources.
According to them, the meeting between American and Iranian officials will likely be held in a direct format in one room, unlike the indirect talks in Muscat. Omani mediators may also attend the meeting, the portal writes.
Before the second meeting between representatives of the United States and Iran, the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi will visit Tehran to discuss procedures for monitoring and verifying the Islamic Republic's nuclear facilities, Axios reported.