Expert-level Iran-US talks postponed to Saturday

"Based on Oman's suggestion and as agreed by the Iranian and US delegations, the technical consultation meeting, supposed to be held on Wednesday within the framework of the indirect talks between the two sides, was postponed to Saturday," Baghaei told reporters, according to a statement by the ministry.

Iran and the United States held the second round of indirect talks on Tehran's nuclear program and the removal of Washington's sanctions in Rome on April 19, with mediation from Oman. The first round took place in Muscat on April 12, and a third session is scheduled to be held in the Omani capital again this coming Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported.

Shortly after the Rome talks, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said that technical negotiations at the expert level were arranged, where the details of a potential agreement's framework may be discussed. It added that the third session would review the result of the experts' work.

Earlier on Tuesday, Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi warned on social media platform X that certain special interest groups are struggling to disrupt the indirect negotiations between Tehran and Washington by "smearing negotiators and goading the US administration into making maximalist demands," without specifying the exact groups.

According to Araghchi, those groups' efforts included "the fake claim" that the potential deal between Iran and the United States would be another copy of the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

He stressed that "many in Iran believe that the JCPOA is no longer good enough for us" and "demand a new accord that guarantees Iran's interests while addressing the concerns of all parties."

Also on Tuesday, Araghchi and Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi held a phone call, during which Araghchi highlighted Iran's "goodwill and seriousness" -based path of diplomacy, and briefed Grossi on the latest situation of the indirect Iran-US talks.

Grossi praised Iran for its "responsible approach," and voiced the IAEA's readiness to contribute to the diplomatic process based on its duties and within the framework of its authority according to the agency's statute.

Iran signed the JCPOA with six world powers -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the United States -- in 2015. Under the deal, Tehran agreed to curb its nuclear programme in exchange for sanctions relief.

The United States, led by President Donald Trump during his first term, unilaterally withdrew from the accord in 2018 and reimposed sanctions, prompting Iran to gradually reduce compliance with its nuclear commitments. Efforts to revive the agreement have not achieved substantial progress.