• US President Donald Trump announced direct high-level talks with Iran over its nuclear programme starting on Sunday.
• Tehran confirmed indirect talks in Oman, emphasising the opportunity and challenge for the US.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Trump discussed freeing hostages from Gaza and US-Israel trade issues.

US President Donald Trump said the United States was starting direct, high-level talks with Iran over its nuclear programme on Sunday, in a shock announcement during a White House meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Speaking in the Oval Office today, Trump said he was hopeful of reaching a deal with Tehran but warned the Islamic republic would be in “great danger” if the talks failed.

Hours later, Tehran confirmed discussions were set for Sunday in Oman but stressed they were “indirect” talks.

“Iran and the United States will meet in Oman on [Sunday] for indirect high-level talks,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on X.

“It is as much an opportunity as it is a test,” he added. “The ball is in America’s court.”

Netanyahu, meanwhile, said the US and Israel were working on another deal to free hostages from war-torn Gaza, where a ceasefire between Israel and Iran’s ally Hamas has collapsed.

“We’re dealing with the Iranians, we have a very big meeting on [Sunday] and we’re dealing with them directly,” Trump told reporters after a meeting that was meant to focus on Israel’s bid to avoid US tariffs.

Trump did not say where the talks would take place but insisted they would not involve surrogates and would be at “almost the highest level”.

US President Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office. Photo / AFP

Trump’s stunning announcement came a day after Iran dismissed direct negotiations on a new deal to curb the country’s nuclear programme, calling the idea pointless.

The US president pulled out of the last deal in 2018, during his first presidency, and there has been widespread speculation that Israel, possibly with US help, might attack Iranian facilities if no new agreement is reached.

Trump issued a stern warning to Tehran, however.

“I think if the talks aren’t successful with Iran, I think Iran’s going to be in great danger, and I hate to say it, great danger, because they can’t have a nuclear weapon,” he said.

Meanwhile, officials said that Russia, China and Iran were due to hold consultations on the Iranian nuclear issue in Moscow.

Trump’s revelation came as Netanyahu became the first foreign leader to plead personally for a reprieve from stinging US tariffs that have shaken the world.

The Israeli premier pledged to eliminate the trade deficit between the two countries and also knock down trade “barriers”.

His country moved to lift its last remaining tariffs on US imports ahead of the meeting.

Gaza talks

Netanyahu and Trump also discussed Gaza, where a short-lived, US-brokered truce between Israel and Hamas has collapsed.

Netanyahu said new negotiations were in the works aimed at freeing more hostages taken by Hamas during its unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, which ignited the war.

“We’re working now on another deal that we hope will succeed, and we’re committed to getting all the hostages out,” he said.

Trump also doubled down on his plan for the US to “control” the Gaza Strip, which he described as a “great piece of real estate”. He initially announced that plan when Netanyahu last visited him in February.

Earlier, Trump greeted Netanyahu outside the West Wing and pumped his fist before the two leaders went inside for a meeting in the Oval Office.

Their planned press conference was cancelled at short notice without explanation — an unusual move. But they spoke to a smaller group of pool reporters at length in the Oval Office.

The Israeli premier’s visit is his second to Washington since Trump’s return to power and comes at short notice — just days after the president slapped a 17% tariff on Israel in his “Liberation Day” announcement last week.

Trump refused to exempt the top beneficiary of US military aid from his global tariff salvo as he said Washington had a significant trade deficit with Israel.

Netanyahu met with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Monday soon after his arrival, according to his office.

The Israeli premier also met Trump’s special Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff.

- Agence France-Presse