Iran, US hold talks in push to avert war

Iran and the United States held talks in Switzerland on Thursday, in a last-ditch bid to avert war under the shadow of the biggest American military build-up in the Middle East in decades.

The Oman-mediated discussions follow repeated threats from Donald Trump to strike Iran, with the U.S. president last Thursday giving Tehran 15 days to reach a deal.

The U.S. and Iranian delegations arrived at the venue at the Omani ambassador's residence amid tight security, following a protest by Iranian exiles at their talks last week who threw objects at the Iranian motorcade.

Oman's Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi confirmed that discussions had begun, saying the two sides expressed "unprecedented openness to new and creative ideas and solutions." He later said the talks had been paused but would resume later in the day.

U.N. nuclear chief Rafael Grossi joined the negotiations, a source close to the talks told AFP, with an Iranian state TV journalist also reporting he was attending.

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian insisted ahead of the talks that the Islamic Republic was not "at all" seeking a nuclear weapon.

While Iran has insisted the discussions focus solely on its nuclear program, the U.S. wants Tehran's missile program and its support for militant groups in the region curtailed.

As part of the dramatic U.S. build-up, the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world's largest aircraft carrier, sent to the Mediterranean this week, left a naval base in Crete on Thursday, an AFP photographer said.

Washington has more than a dozen warships in the Middle East: one aircraft carrier -- the USS Abraham Lincoln -- nine destroyers, and three other combat ships.

It is rare for there to be two U.S. aircraft carriers, which carry dozens of warplanes and are crewed by thousands of sailors, in the region.

The developments follow massive protests in Iran that rights groups say saw thousands of demonstrators killed.

AFP