US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday the United States will hold direct talks with Iran tomorrow to discuss Iran's nuclear programme.The talks between US special envoy Steve Witkoff and a senior Iranian leader are scheduled for Saturday in Oman.’We hope that'll lead to peace. We've been very clear what Iran is never going to have as a nuclear weapon, and I think that's what led to this meeting,’ Rubio said during a Cabinet meeting chaired by President Donald Trump.A senior adviser to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned on Thursday that Iran could expel inspectors of the UN nuclear watchdog as ‘threats’ multiply ahead of key talks with the United States, AFP reports from Tehran.’The continuation of external threats and Iran being in a state of military attack may lead to deterrent measures, including expulsion of inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency and cessation of cooperation,’ Shamkhani said on X. ‘Transfer of enriched materials to secure locations may also be considered,’ he added.US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will be in Oman for breakthrough talks on Tehran's nuclear programme this weekend.With no prior experience in foreign policy, Witkoff landed one of the world's biggest jobs as US President Donald Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, and has since led high-stakes talks on Gaza and Ukraine.Witkoff, a 68-year-old billionaire and a regular golfing partner of Trump's, later became the first US official to visit Gaza since 2023.
