Iranian FM to visit Russia to discuss Iran-US Muscat talks

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told reporters that Tehran remains committed to consultations with all signatories of the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), stressing that maintaining such interactions is "beneficial."

Russia's Foreign Ministry confirmed the visit, saying Araghchi will meet with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and other senior officials during his trip.

According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Araghchi and US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff held "indirect" talks centered on Tehran's nuclear issue and sanctions relief on Saturday in the Omani capital of Muscat in a "constructive" atmosphere, and the two countries will hold the second round of negotiations on April 19 outside Oman, though the structure and mediation of the negotiations will remain unchanged, Xinhua news agency reported.

Iran and the United States are set to hold a second round of talks on April 19, following what both sides described as a "constructive" first round in the Omani capital on Saturday.

The meeting, which lasted two and a half hours, marked a rare thaw in a long-frozen relationship fraught with sanctions, military brinkmanship and regional rivalries.

The "indirect" talks, held between Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi and US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, focused on Iran's nuclear issue and sanctions relief, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Iran signed a nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, with six major countries -- Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the United States -- in July 2015, accepting restrictions on its nuclear programme in return for sanctions relief.

However, the United States withdrew from the deal in May 2018 and reinstated sanctions, prompting Iran to scale back some of its nuclear commitments. Efforts to revive the nuclear deal have not achieved substantial progress.