Description: The fourth round of talks between US and Iran, scheduled to take place in Rome on 10 May were abruptly canceled in the midst of growing threats regarding a military intervention from the US. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi through the social platform X announced the cancellation citing technical and logistical reasons, however, sources familiar with the negotiations stated that mounting threats from the US and their constant bombardment of Yemen’s Houthi strongholds were the reason behind it. US President Donald Trump reiterated his position on imposing the so – called maximum pressure strategy by putting new Iranian entities under sanctions last week which further escalated the economic pressure the Islamic Republic is under. The previous three encounters weren’t rich on public information as both countries repositioned their diplomatic posturing and the most relevant development was the inclusion of technical experts.
Impact: US – Iran bilateral tensions continue to escalate with the cancellation of the fourth round of negotiations. Both countries have placed their military assets in the region on the highest level of preparedness as they diplomatically reengaged after 10 years of campaigning proxy wars in the Middle East. The latest signals from the Trump administration indicates that the US would pressure Iran to abandon all and any ambitions of developing a nuclear program regardless of its purpose, while Iran has publicly denounced any potential concessions on the subject so far. The Iranian regime is facing massive pressure from the substantially depleted economic state of affairs caused by the US sanctions but hasn’t offered any concrete proposals which would potentially lead to a diplomatic solution. The constant threats regarding a direct military confrontation, mostly publicly enforced by the US, could be perceived as intensifying the diplomatic pressure on Iran in order to force the regime towards making serious compromises regarding their nuclear ambitions.