by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief
(Worthy News) – Planned nuclear negotiations between the United States and Iran unraveled this week after Tehran demanded changes to both the format and location of the talks, U.S. and regional officials said. The meetings, initially set for Friday in Turkey, were called off after Washington rejected Iran’s insistence on moving the venue to Oman and limiting discussions to the nuclear file alone.
A senior U.S. official told Axios that Washington presented Tehran with a take-it-or-leave-it proposal and remains ready to negotiate under the original framework. Israeli officials echoed skepticism, with one senior figure saying the gaps between the sides are “very, very large.”
The collapse of the talks has renewed debate in Washington over next steps, with U.S. officials telling Reuters that President Donald Trump is again weighing military options alongside diplomacy. Iranian sources countered that U.S. leaks about the breakdown reflect Washington’s lack of seriousness.
White House envoy Steve Witkoff and presidential adviser Jared Kushner, who had arrived in the region to represent the U.S., are expected to return home after consultations with regional leaders.
Tensions escalated further after two “very aggressive” Iranian actions toward U.S. vessels in the Gulf. Iranian Revolutionary Guard gunboats attempted to board a U.S.-flagged commercial ship near the Strait of Hormuz before withdrawing, and an Iranian drone approached the USS Abraham Lincoln, where it was downed by a U.S. fighter jet, according to U.S. officials.
In Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu warned against trusting Iranian assurances during talks with Witkoff, while Senate Republicans publicly backed Trump’s hard line. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has reiterated that any agreement must also address Iran’s ballistic missile program—an outright red line for Tehran.
While officials stress the talks have not been formally canceled and could still proceed if Iran shows flexibility, U.S. and Israeli sources say no meeting is expected Friday under current conditions, leaving the region on edge as diplomacy stalls and military risks rise.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
Reverend Jesse Jackson, the influential civil rights campaigner and former presidential hopeful described by his family as “a servant leader,” has died at age 84.
Senate Republicans say they have enough support within their 53-member conference to pass the SAVE America Act, but overcoming a Democratic blockade may require reviving the rarely used “talking filibuster.”
The U.S. Departments of Energy and Defense have transported a small nuclear reactor by military cargo aircraft for the first time, marking a significant milestone in President Donald Trump’s push to expand advanced nuclear energy across the country.
President Donald Trump on Monday directed federal authorities to step in and coordinate cleanup efforts following what he called a “massive ecological disaster” in the Potomac River after a major sewer line collapse in Maryland.
A large Second Temple–era stone workshop that supplied Jerusalem’s Jewish population some 2,000 years ago has been uncovered on the eastern slopes of Mount Scopus, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced Monday.
The United States has moved to replenish its stockpile of GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bunker-buster bombs, it was revealed this week, as tensions with Tehran remain elevated.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared Sunday that Israel will not accept any arrangement allowing Hamas to retain weapons, warning that the terror group must fully disarm or face a renewed Israeli military campaign in Gaza.