DUBAI, Feb 9 (Reuters) – Ali Larijani, an adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and secretary of its national security council, will visit Oman on Tuesday following indirect U.S.-Iranian talks there, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.
U.S. and Iranian diplomats engaged through Omani mediation in the Gulf Arab state last week in an effort to revive diplomacy amid a U.S. naval buildup near Iran and Tehran’s vows of a harsh response if attacked.
“During this trip, (Larijani) will meet with high-ranking officials of the Sultanate of Oman and discuss the latest regional and international developments and bilateral cooperation at various levels,” Tasnim said.
The date and venue of the next round of talks have yet to be announced.
Iran and the U.S. held five rounds of talks last year on curbing Tehran’s nuclear programme, with the process breaking down mainly due to disputes over uranium enrichment inside Iran. In June, the U.S. attacked Iranian nuclear facilities at the end of a 12-day Israeli bombing campaign.
Tehran has since said it has halted enrichment activity, which the U.S. views as a possible pathway to nuclear bombs. Iran says its nuclear programme is solely for peaceful purposes.
The United States wants to include Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal in the negotiations, but Tehran has ruled this out.
Larijani has served in a wide range of senior influential positions under Khamenei over the past few decades, including speaker of parliament and chief negotiator in past negotiations on Iran’s nuclear activity with world powers.
In a televised statement aired on Monday, Khamenei called on Iranians to participate in the coming anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, whose 47th year will be celebrated on Wednesday.
“The presence of the people in the march and their expression of loyalty to the Islamic Republic will cause the enemy to stop coveting Iran,” Khamenei said.
(Reporting by Dubai Newsroom; Editing by Alex Richardson, Toby Chopra and Mark Heinrich)
