TEHRAN, May 9 (Xinhua) -- Iran has agreed to hold a fourth round of indirect nuclear talks with the United States in Oman on Sunday, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Friday.
The date and venue were proposed by Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Albusaidi and accepted by Tehran, Tasnim said, citing an unnamed member of Iran's negotiating team.
The talks will focus exclusively on Iran's nuclear program and the lifting of U.S. sanctions, the source added.
The delegations have held three rounds of indirect talks so far -- the first and third in Muscat on April 12 and April 26, and the second in Rome on April 19. A fourth round had been scheduled for May 3 in Rome but was postponed due to what Oman described as "logistical reasons."
Also on Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi held a phone call with Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), to discuss the progress of the talks, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The two also reviewed bilateral cooperation on Iran's nuclear activities, which Tehran insists are for peaceful purposes.
Iran signed a nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, with six world powers -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the United States -- in 2015. Under the deal, Tehran agreed to curb its nuclear program 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. ■
