Oman FM confirms US-Iran negotiations set for Thursday in Geneva

Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Albusaidi said on Sunday that the next round of U.S.-Iran talks will take place on Thursday in Geneva. "Pleased to confirm U.S.-Iran negotiations are now set for Geneva this Thursday, with a positive push to go the extra mile towards finalizing the deal," the minister said on social media platform X.

Meanwhile, Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi has said he will probably meet U.S. president's special envoy Steve Witkoff in Geneva on Thursday to discuss the draft proposal of a possible nuclear deal to be prepared by Tehran.

He made the remarks in an interview with the CBS News, which was broadcast on Sunday.

Araghchi said if the United States seeks to find a solution to Iran's "peaceful" nuclear program, diplomacy is the sole way, adding Iran has proved that in the past, "and I believe there is still a good chance to have a diplomatic solution, which is based on a win-win game."

He added a solution is within the two sides' reach, and there is no need for any military buildup as it can neither help the process nor pressurize Iran.

Commenting on the draft proposal he had earlier said would be prepared "within two to three days", Araghchi said, "We are still working on that and we are trying to make it something that consists of elements capable of accommodating both sides' concerns and interests."

He added that Iran and the United States can reach a nuclear deal better than the one signed between Iran and world powers in 2015, noting unlike the previous negotiations, where the involved parties went into so many details, "this time, there is no need for that many details, and we can agree on basic things and make sure that Iran's nuclear program is peaceful and would remain peaceful forever and, at the same time, more sanctions would be lifted."

Araghchi said the nuclear issue is the sole focus of the ongoing negotiations, while highlighting Iran's right to uranium enrichment on its soil.

"We are a committed member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and have a safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency. We are ready to fully cooperate with the agency according to the safeguards (agreement) and may accept with certain conditions the additional protocol to the safeguards (agreement) and the NPT. I think a full verification and monitoring mechanism (of Iran's nuclear program) is acceptable and can be in place," he added.

Also on Sunday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said recent negotiations with the United States have "yielded encouraging signals", but Iran is prepared for "any potential scenario".

"Iran is committed to peace and stability in the region. Recent negotiations involved the exchange of practical proposals and yielded encouraging signals. However, we continue to closely monitor U.S. actions and have made all necessary preparations for any potential scenario," Pezeshkian said in a post on social media.

Iran and the United States held the first and second rounds of their renewed nuclear negotiations on Feb 6 and 17, respectively, in Muscat, the Omani capital, and Geneva. The diplomatic process comes amid a U.S. military buildup near Iran.

Oman FM confirms US-Iran negotiations set for Thursday in Geneva

Oman FM confirms US-Iran negotiations set for Thursday in Geneva

Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Thursday presided over a State Council executive meeting that studied work on building a unified national market and reviewed and approved a plan for the development of a modern emergency response system during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030).

Noting that building a unified national market is essential to advancing high-quality development, the meeting called for deepening institutional frameworks in areas such as property rights protection, market access, fair competition, social credit and market exit mechanisms.

The meeting also urged efforts to advance high-standard connectivity of market infrastructure to facilitate smooth economic circulation and effectively reduce logistics costs across society.

Emergency management is critical to protecting people's lives and property, the meeting said. It called for accelerating the development of a modern emergency response system, deepening reform and innovation in emergency management, and improving coordinated response mechanisms.

Efforts should be made to strengthen risk prevention at the source, enhance monitoring, forecasting and early warning, and accelerate a shift in governance toward proactive prevention, according to the meeting.

A draft revision of the Law on the People's Bank of China was also discussed and approved in principle at the meeting, which decided to submit the draft to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for deliberation.

Chinese premier chairs State Council executive meeting