The three-hour meeting took place just hours after US President Donald Trump said in his UN address that he was considering whether to pursue a deal with Iran or “annihilate them.” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held talks with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, according to reports.
Iranian officials said that the discussions were conducted through intermediaries, with Qatar among those facilitating contact between the two sides. “Today, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, we engaged in lengthy talks with the Iranian delegation through the mediators,” Witkoff said on X, describing the discussions as “constructive and promising. He further said the mediators would continue their work.
Iran was represented by Araghchi, while Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, represented the United States. The meeting is considered the first direct US-Iran contact at this level in roughly three months. The previous face-to-face talks took place in June, when US Vice President JD Vance met with Iranian officials in Switzerland.
Araghchi outlined Tehran’s conditions for reopening the strategic waterway, according to Iranian state media. The Strait of Hormuz featured prominently in the latest talks. These included ending the US naval blockade, unfreezing Iranian assets, and terminating the multi-front war.
