US says ‘slight progress’ in Iran talks amid uncertainty on deal to end war

US secretary of state Marco Rubio has said there was “slight progress” during talks with Iran amid uncertainty as to whether a deal will be reached or war will resume.

He spoke days after US President Donald Trump said he was holding off on a military strike on Iran because “serious negotiations” were under way.

Mr Trump has been threatening for weeks that the ceasefire reached in mid-April could end if Iran does not make a deal, with shifting parameters for striking such an agreement.

Mr Rubio spoke ahead of a meeting of Nato foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, where the the military alliance is expected to discuss what role it could play in helping police the Strait of Hormuz once the war is over.

Mr Rubio said he did not want to exaggerate the progress, saying there had been “a little bit of movement and that’s good”.

He said the conversations were ongoing. Still, in recent weeks there have been repeated claims of progress, yet a deal has not been reached.

Mr Trump has repeatedly set deadlines for Tehran and then backed off. But he has also previously indicated he would hold off on military action to allow talks to continue – only to turn around and launch strikes.

That is what happened at the war’s outset, when he ordered strikes in late February shortly after indicating he would let talks play out.

He said he called off attacks this week on Iran at the request of allies in the Middle East, including the leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, who have been targeted by Iran and its allied militias.

But Mr Trump’s decision to give the talks a chance sparked tension this week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

An official said on Thursday that Mr Trump and Mr Netanyahu had a “dramatic” phone conversation on Tuesday about the status of the Iranian negotiations and that Israel is angry with Mr Trump’s efforts to strike a deal with Iran.

The White House declined to comment on the substance or tenor of the call. Mr Trump told reporters after the conversation that Mr Netanyahu “will do whatever I want him to do”.

The comments are some of the first public signs of daylight between the leaders since they launched the war in February.

Pakistan’s army chief was travelling on Friday to Tehran for a third round of talks with Iranian leaders this week, two Pakistani officials said.

Field Marshal Asim Munir will be joined by Pakistan’s interior minister, who has already met Iranian leaders twice this week. Pakistan has worked to mediate a peace deal between Iran and the US since Mr Munir facilitated face-to-face talks between the two countries in Islamabad last month.

Pakistan’s mediation efforts are also expected to be discussed when Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif travels to China this weekend for a four-day visit, said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi.

Still, major sticking points remain.

Iran has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for the shipment of oil, gas, fertiliser and other petroleum products.

The US is blockading Iranian ports and has redirected 94 commercial vessels and disabled four others since mid-April, the US Central Command said in a social media post.

At the Nato meeting in Sweden, Mr Rubio said he discussed reopening the strait with other foreign ministers. He said there needs to be a “plan B” if Washington and Tehran fail to reach a deal.

“Someone’s going to have to do something about it, OK?” Mr Rubio said, insisting that Iran was not going to “voluntarily reopen” the strait.

The US and Israel have said Iran can never have a nuclear weapon. While regional officials have said Iran offered some nuclear concessions, Mr Trump has said he wants to remove highly enriched uranium from the country and prevent it from developing nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes.

Two regional officials and a western diplomat told the Associated Press that Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates separately launched multiple attacks on Iran and Iranian-backed Shiite militias in Iraq, during the war.

An Israeli military officer with knowledge of the situation also confirmed that the UAE proactively struck Iran at least once.

The regional officials said the strikes on Iran targeted military facilities, including missile and drone launchers, mostly belonging to the Revolutionary Guard Corps.

One of those regional officials said the strikes by Saudi Arabia targeted hideouts of Iraqi militias, mainly Kataib Hezbollah, after Riyadh assessed that most of the drone attacks on Saudi Arabia came from neighbouring Iraq. He said Saudi Arabia has repeatedly briefed Baghdad about the Iraqi-originated attacks before deciding to strike.

The western diplomat and one of the regional officials said the UAE had pushed for a collective military response from the Gulf Arab countries since the onset of the war.

Asked for comment, the United Arab Emirates referred to a May 16 statement by its Foreign Ministry that “all measures undertaken by the UAE have been within the framework of defensive actions aimed at protecting its sovereignty, civilians, and vital infrastructure, in line with the country’s legitimate right to safeguard its national security and maintain its stability”.

Iran has also not publicly addressed being targeted by the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Following claims that attacks on Saudi Arabia and the UAE had been launched from Iraqi territory, the Iraqi prime minister also ordered an investigation.