The Hague (TDI): US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said American and Iranian officials are expected to begin talks next week, raising hopes for a possible diplomatic thaw even as Iran remains adamant about continuing its nuclear program.
Speaking at the close of a NATO summit in the Netherlands, Trump said, “We may sign an agreement, I don’t know,” adding, “The way I see it, they fought, the war is done.”
While Tehran has not confirmed any upcoming talks, US envoy Steve Witkoff suggested both sides have been in touch, through direct and indirect channels. A sixth round of formal negotiations, originally planned for earlier this month in Oman, was cancelled after Israeli airstrikes on Iranian territory.
The possibility of dialogue follows a fragile ceasefire that took effect on Tuesday after nearly two weeks of conflict between Iran and Israel. Trump, who took credit for helping negotiate the truce, insisted that US airstrikes “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear facilities and said Iran would “not be enriching” uranium going forward.
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However, Iranian officials strongly pushed back, asserting that the country will not abandon its nuclear program. On Wednesday, Iran’s parliament voted to fast-track legislation aimed at halting cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN watchdog that has monitored Iran’s nuclear activities for years.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf accused the IAEA of bias, saying it failed to condemn the US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend. “Until the safety of our nuclear sites is guaranteed, cooperation with the IAEA will be suspended,” he told lawmakers. “Our peaceful program will now move ahead faster.”
In response, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi urged Iran to resume cooperation. “We need to return. We need to engage,” Grossi said, adding that inspectors need to reassess Iran’s uranium stockpiles amid reports that highly enriched material was relocated before the strikes.
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Trump dismissed a US intelligence report suggesting the strikes had only delayed Iran’s nuclear program by a few months. “That’s ridiculous,” he said. “It’ll take years to rebuild what we took out.”
While Israeli officials have not publicly detailed the damage, the Israel Atomic Energy Commission claimed the joint US-Israeli operation had set back Iran’s nuclear ambitions by “many years,” though it offered no evidence.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, acknowledged the strikes caused serious damage. Speaking to Al Jazeera, he said, “Our nuclear installations have been badly damaged, that’s for sure,” but did not disclose specifics. He added that while cooperation with the IAEA may be suspended, it is not being permanently ended.
Farkhund Yousafzai is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
