Iran official upbeat over nuclear talks, top delegate cautious thestar.com.my - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from thestar.com.my Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Israeli officials say US ‘respects’ Israel’s ‘freedom of action’; US says it’s acting with ‘transparency’ toward Jerusalem, both nations ‘share a common interest’ on Iran
A regional diplomatic source in Washington told
The National the delegation would visit Saudi Arabia and the UAE to discuss the status of current talks with Iran.
Reuters reported the tentative itinerary includes Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt and Jordan.
Besides Mr McGurk, State Department counsellor Derek Chollett and acting assistant secretary for Near East affairs Joey Hood are expected to be part of the delegation. The head of the Middle East desk at the Pentagon, Dana Stroul, will also go on the trip, Bloomberg reported.
This is the largest and highest-level delegation from President Joe Biden s administration to visit the region since he took office on January 20.
Follow RT on The US has approved a multibillion-dollar project to beef up its plutonium production at the same time Washington is calling on Iran to return to an international agreement designed to prevent Tehran from developing nuclear bombs.
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the federal agency responsible for nuclear research and weapons manufacturing in the US, has approved the first design phase for the new project.
At least 30 plutonium pits per year will be built to meet national security needs, the NNSA said in a statement on Wednesday.
The project at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico, will cost an estimated $2.7–$3.9 billion and could be finished between 2027 and 2028, the agency said.
The meeting comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East and as the Biden administration is participating in talks in Vienna to return to the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.
Iran was top of the agenda in the meeting between Blinken and Mossad Director Yossi Cohen and Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. and U.N. Gilad Erdan, according to the source.
ADVERTISEMENT
It was a good meeting where Cohen and Erdan expressed deep concern on the nuclear issue with Iran and regional issues, according to the source.
State Department spokesperson Ned Price on Thursday would not confirm or provide details of such a meeting but said the Biden administration has been in close contact with Israeli counterparts in particular over Iran.