TEHRAN, Feb. 16 — Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi on Monday met Rafael Grossi, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), for technical discussions on Tehran’s nuclear issue.
The meeting was held at Araghchi’s place of stay in Geneva, Switzerland, ahead of indirect nuclear negotiations between Iran and the United States that are scheduled for Tuesday in the Swiss city, according to a statement released by the Iranian Foreign Ministry.
During the meeting, the two sides exchanged views on certain technical issues pertaining to cooperation between Iran and the IAEA within the framework of Tehran’s safeguards obligations and in view of a law passed by the Iranian parliament in June last year to suspend bilateral collaborations, the statement said, adding that the Iranian side presented its technical viewpoints in relation to the indirect nuclear talks with the United States.
Following the meeting, Grossi said in a post on social media platform X that the two sides held “in-depth technical discussions” in preparation for Tuesday’s “important” negotiations.
Earlier in the day, Araghchi wrote on X that during his visit to Geneva, he is accompanied by Iranian nuclear experts, along with whom he would meet Grossi for “deep technical discussion.”
He added that he will also meet Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi ahead of Tuesday’s indirect talks. “I am in Geneva with real ideas to achieve a fair and equitable deal.
What is not on the table: submission before threats,” said Araghchi. Iranian and U.S. delegations, led by Araghchi and U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff separately, held a first round of talks in Oman’s Muscat on Feb. 6. Witkoff will again lead the U.S. delegation in Geneva, according to U.S. media reports. (Namibia Daily News/Xinhua)
