Nuclear talks between the US and Iran are expected to take place in Oman on Friday, Axios reporter Barak Ravid said on Tuesday, citing an Arab source.
President Donald Trump's administration agreed to Iran's request to move the talks from Turkey, and negotiations are still ongoing on whether Arab and Muslim countries in the region will join the talks in Oman, Ravid added, citing the source.
Iran has requested changes to the venue and format of nuclear talks with the United States, Axios reported on Tuesday, citing two sources knowledgeable of the matter.
Reuters reported that Iran is seeking to move the talks from Istanbul to Oman.
"They want to change the format, they want to change the scope," said the regional diplomat with knowledge of Iran's demands.
"They only want to discuss the nuclear file with the Americans, while the US wants to include other topics such as the (ballistic) missiles and the activities of Iran's proxies in the region."
The Iranian Foreign Minister claimed that consultations for the venue of talks with the United States were underway, and confirmed that they would happen later this week.
It also claimed that the location and timing of the talks were not "complicated issues" and that the issues should not be used as "a pretext for media games."
Iran, US to meet later in February
This comes after Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced that they would meet in Istanbul on Friday.
Senior officials, likely foreign ministers, from Qatar, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Turkey were expected to join the talks, sources confirmed to The Jerusalem Post. Trump's advisor and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, will also attend.
"It remains to be seen whether the United States intends to engage in serious, results-oriented negotiations," one source commented.
The Post learned that Iran told mediators that it is ready to discuss the nuclear issue and is even willing to consider compromises.
Additionally, the Islamic Republic seemed amenable to discussing the ballistic missiles issue and its proxies in later talks, according to a source familiar with the details.
Iran reportedly believes that reaching an agreement on the nuclear issue will cause Trump to abandon the idea of war. The source added to the Post that if there is a nuclear deal, it will probably prevent Israel from conducting strikes against Iran's missile storage facilities.
However, in Israel and the US, the assessment is that the chance of reaching an agreement with the Islamic Republic is slim to none.
US asserts talks still on after Iranian threatens to withdraw
Separately on Tuesday, Iranian officials threatened to withdraw from the upcoming Istanbul talks, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter, though it is unclear what triggered the remarks.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Tuesday that talks with Iran were still scheduled to take place later this week.
A source familiar with the situation said on Tuesday that Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, was due to take part in the talks, along with US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
An Iranian diplomatic source told Reuters that Tehran's view of the talks is neither optimistic nor pessimistic, adding that the Islamic Republic's defensive capabilities are non-negotiable and that it is ready for any scenario.
"It remains to be seen whether the United States also intends to conduct serious, results-oriented negotiations or not," the source said.
Amichai Stein contributed to this report.