Pressure and diplomacy: US hits Iran with fresh sanctions

Shafaq News/ On Monday, the United States imposed sanctions on two Iranian nationals and a Tehran-based technology company, as indirect nuclear talks with Iran resumed in Oman.

The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Mohammad Reza Sadeqi Saber, Ahmad Haqiqat Talab, and Fanavaran Ayandeh Negar Pouya Pars, a firm operating in the sensitive technology sector in Tehran’s Shamsabad industrial zone.

The sanctions were issued as delegations from both countries convened in Muscat for a fourth round of nuclear negotiations to reach a new agreement limiting Iran’s nuclear capabilities in exchange for sanctions relief.

Both sides have acknowledged limited progress, but fundamental disagreements persist over enrichment thresholds and verification mechanisms.

However, uranium enrichment remains a central dispute. Tehran insists on maintaining enrichment activities, while Washington considers advanced enrichment a red line.

The renewed diplomacy follows a message from US President Donald Trump urging Iran to reengage, warning that failure to reach an agreement could result in military escalation.

Tensions escalated after the US withdrew from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) in 2018 and reinstated economic sanctions. Iran remained partially compliant for a year before incrementally expanding its nuclear program beyond the accord’s limits.