Iran-US nuclear talks shot down by Israeli attacks; what it means for Middle East and Tehran’s path to acquire nukes

Fresh tensions in the Middle East following Israel's airstrikes on Iranian military and nuclear infrastructure and Iran’s retaliation have thrown the Iran-US nuclear talks into murky waters. As conflict between Israel and Iran heats up, Oman has officially confirmed the breakdown of negotiations between Tehran and Washington on the nuclear deal.

Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi, in a post on X, confirmed the cancellation of nuclear talks. "The Iranian-American talks scheduled for this Sunday in Muscat will now not take place. But diplomacy and dialogue remain the only path to lasting peace," he said.

Earlier, Iran also called the negotiations “pointless” after Israel launched strikes against the Islamic Republic, killing its four senior commanders, including Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami, Iranian military chief Mohammad Bagheri, and Air Force chief Brig. Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh.


Earlier, US President Donald Trump had called on Tehran to resume negotiations and conclude a deal “before it is too late.”

In response to Israel’s airstrikes, Iran late Friday (June 13) launched more than 150 ballistic missiles against Israel, marking the beginning of a retaliatory operation called True Promise III. The main target of the strike was the city of Tel Aviv, Iranian media reported. Iran claimed that it managed to hit the headquarters of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, MaKirya (also known as The Kirya or Israel's Pentagon)

Why did Israel attack now

Many experts, closely following developments in the Middle East, believe that the Israeli attacks against Iran were no coincidence, and they clearly depicted that Israel not only wanted to derail the negotiations but also sabotage them to push Iran towards abandoning them altogether.

Also, there are multiple factors that could have been a force behind Israel’s decision to launch an offensive against Iran days before its negotiation talks with Washington.

One of the likely reasons could have been that Iran was taking strides toward enriching uranium to a degree that would likely allow Tehran to upgrade to a weapons-grade level very rapidly, according to a report by the International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA). Also, intelligence shows that Iran was inching closer to a possible breakout status for a nuclear weapon.

Iran’s proxies like Hamas, Hezbollah, Houthis and some other militant groups don't present the same threat to Israel. In the past, an Israeli attack on Iran would have invited a multidirectional response from all corners of the resistance as seen in the early days after the October 7, 2023, attack.

Further, the previous attacks launched by Israel on Iran in April and October 2024 degraded Iran’s ballistic and surface-to-air missiles and air defense radar systems.

Where do US-Iran talks stand now

As Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that his country would continue its airstrikes “for as many days as it takes,” there are indications that Trump is still holding open the possibility of some kind of deal with Iran.

Following Israel’s attack against Iran, he warned Tehran that if it didn’t come back to the table and cut a deal, the next attack would be “even more brutal.” The attack could possibly push Iran into reengaging in negotiations.

On the other hand, the killing of Iranian nuclear scientists and the apparent stalling of the Sunday negotiators may convince Tehran to intensify its efforts towards a nuclear weapon as the only means of deterrence against Israel.