Morteza Nicobazul/Nurfoto/Getty Images
Iranians wave Iranian flags in entrance of the Azadi (Freedom) Monument in western Tehran on February 11.
CNN —
Amid heightened tensions within the Middle East, U.S. officers held oblique talks with Iranian officers in Oman in January, in response to a U.S. official acquainted with the matter.
The talks marked the primary identified engagement between the United States and Iran because the September prisoner trade between the 2 international locations, which was the results of years of painstaking oblique negotiations.
White House Middle East adviser Brett McGuirk and Biden administration official on Iran, Abram Paley, shared messages with Iranian officers via their Omani liaison, the folks mentioned. Officials mentioned they had been all in the identical constructing.
The talks coated a variety of points, together with Iran’s nuclear program and Houthi assaults on US ships within the Red Sea.
In latest months, the United States has carried out airstrikes in opposition to Iranian-backed militias in Syria and Iraq and the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen, geared toward deterring assaults within the area.
The risk of additional engagements was mentioned, however the two international locations haven’t proceeded to a second spherical of talks, the official mentioned.
The Financial Times first reported on the assembly.
The White House National Security Council declined to remark. CNN has reached out to the State Department for remark.
CNN reported in January that in US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s go to to the Middle East, there have been oblique back-door operations in opposition to Iran in an effort to forestall widespread battle within the area.
America’s high diplomat supposed to clarify to the leaders he met that the United States doesn’t need or intend to escalate the battle.
Since the early days of the Gaza battle, efforts have been underway to forge again channels with Iran via companions in addition to opponents similar to China, because the United States seeks to stem the regional conflagration.
CNN’s Jennifer Hansler contributed reporting.