Iran's FM, UN chief discuss latest progress of Tehran-Washington talks

TEHRAN -- Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday exchanged views over the phone on the latest progress of the Omani-mediated indirect talks between Tehran and Washington.

The two sides also discussed the latest regional and international developments, according to a statement released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry.

Araghchi highlighted Iran's "responsible" approach of choosing the path of diplomacy to resolve the "fabricated issue regarding its peaceful nuclear program."

He said that as a member of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Iran insisted on its right to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, for which uranium enrichment was a necessity, while remaining committed to its international obligations.

He said US officials' "contradictory" behaviors and remarks, along with the continuation of sanctions and threats against the Iranian nation, had led to the intensification of the distrust and suspicion towards Washington's seriousness in advancing the path of diplomacy.

The UN chief, for his part, appreciated the Iranian foreign minister's approach of explaining the developments related to his country's indirect talks with the United States, and underscored the importance of continuing the diplomatic process until a result is achieved, the statement said.

Iran and the United States held the first and third rounds of their indirect negotiations in Oman's Muscat on April 12 and 26, and the second one in Italy's Rome on April 19.

The fourth round was scheduled to take place in Rome on Saturday but was postponed to an unspecified date owing to what Oman described as "logistical reasons."