US and Iran wrap up latest nuclear talks without a deal as the risk of
war looms
[February 27, 2026]
By FANNY BRODERSEN, JON GAMBRELL and MELANIE LIDMAN
GENEVA (AP) — Iran and the United States held hours of indirect
negotiations Thursday over Tehran's nuclear program but walked away
without a deal, leaving the danger of another Mideast war on the table
as the U.S. has gathered a massive fleet of aircraft and warships in the
region.
Oman's Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, who mediated the talks in
Geneva, said there had been “significant progress in the negotiation”
without elaborating.
But just before the talks ended, Iranian state television reported that
Tehran was determined to continue enriching uranium, rejected proposals
to transfer it abroad and sought the lifting of international sanctions,
indicating it was not prepared to meet U.S. President Donald Trump's
demands.
Trump wants a deal to constrain Iran’s nuclear program, and he sees an
opportunity while the country is struggling at home with growing dissent
following nationwide protests. Iran also hopes to avert war, but
maintains it has the right to enrich uranium and does not want to
discuss other issues, like its long-range missile program or support for
armed groups like Hamas and Hezbollah.
Al-Busaidi said technical talks involving lower-level representatives
would continue next week in Vienna, the home of the International Atomic
Energy Agency. The United Nations' atomic watchdog likely would be
critical in any deal.
In an interview with Iranian state television, Iran’s foreign minister
said the talks with the U.S. were some of the country’s “most intense
and longest rounds of negotiations.”
Abbas Araghchi offered no specifics but said “what needs to happen has
been clearly spelled out from our side.”
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
‘A very terrible scenario’
The stakes could hardly be higher.
If America attacks, Iran has said U.S. military bases in the region
would be considered legitimate targets, putting at risk tens of
thousands of American service members. Iran has also threatened to
attack Israel, meaning a regional war again could erupt across the
Middle East.
“There would be no victory for anybody — it would be a devastating war,”
Araghchi told India Today in an interview recorded Wednesday just before
he flew to Geneva.
“Since the Americans' bases are scattered through different places in
the region, then unfortunately perhaps the whole region would be engaged
and be involved, so it is a very terrible scenario.”
Ali Vaez, an Iran expert with the International Crisis Group, said it
was a good sign that the Americans did not walk away immediately
Thursday when Iran presented its latest proposal.
“There might still not be a breakthrough at the end of this day, but the
very fact that the U.S. team is returning shows that there is enough
common ground between the two sides," he said.
Geneva talks are the third meeting since June war
The two sides held multiple rounds of talks last year that collapsed
when Israel launched a 12-day war against Iran in June and the U.S.
carried out heavy strikes on its nuclear sites, leaving much of Iran's
nuclear program in ruins even as the full extent of the damage remains
unclear.
Araghchi represented Iran at the talks. Steve Witkoff, a billionaire
real estate developer and friend of Trump who serves as a special
Mideast envoy, headed up the U.S. delegation with Trump's son-in-law
Jared Kushner. The talks again were mediated by Oman, an Arab Gulf
country that's long served as an interlocutor between Iran and the West.
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The U.S. delegation arrives at the Oman ambassador's residency,
where the indirect nuclear talks between the United States and Iran
are taking place in Geneva, Switzerland, Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026.
(Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP)
The two sides adjourned after around three hours of talks and
resumed the discussions later.
During the break, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail
Baghaei said the Iranians felt there were “constructive proposals”
offered on both nuclear issues and sanctions relief.
Trump wants Iran to completely halt its enrichment of uranium and
roll back both its long-range missile program and its support for
regional armed groups. Iran says it will only discuss nuclear
issues, and maintains its atomic program is for entirely peaceful
purposes.
US suspects Iran is rebuilding its program
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters Wednesday that
Iran is “always trying to rebuild elements” of its nuclear program.
He said that Tehran is not enriching uranium right now, “but they’re
trying to get to the point where they ultimately can.”
Iran has said it hasn't enriched since June, but it has blocked IAEA
inspectors from visiting the sites America bombed. Satellite photos
analyzed by The Associated Press have shown activity at two of those
sites, suggesting Iran is trying to assess and potentially recover
material there.
The West and the IAEA say Iran had a nuclear weapons program until
2003. After Trump scrapped the 2015 nuclear agreement, Iran ramped
up its enrichment of uranium to 60% purity — a short, technical step
away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.
U.S. intelligence agencies assess that Iran has yet to restart a
weapons program, but has “undertaken activities that better position
it to produce a nuclear device, if it chooses to do so.” Some
Iranian officials have spoken openly about the country's readiness
to produce a bomb if that decision is taken.
Threat of military action sparks war fears
If the talks fail, uncertainty hangs over the timing of any possible
U.S. attack.
If the aim of potential military action is to pressure Iran to make
concessions in nuclear negotiations, it’s not clear whether limited
strikes would work. If the goal is to remove Iran’s leaders, that
will likely commit the U.S. to a larger, longer military campaign.
There has been no public sign of planning for what would come next,
including the potential for chaos in Iran.
There is also uncertainty about what any military action could mean
for the wider region. Tehran could retaliate against the
American-allied nations of the Persian Gulf or Israel. Oil prices
have risen in recent days in part due to those concerns, with
benchmark Brent crude now around $70 a barrel. Iran in the last
round of talks said it briefly halted traffic in the Strait of
Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth
of all traded oil passes.
___
Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Lidman
reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Will Weissert in
Washington and Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report.
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