Tehran:

Iran said Monday it currently sees “no grounds” for its indirect talks with the United States via intermediary Oman, citing the crisis in the Middle East.

Iran said in June that it had held indirect talks with the United States via Oman, despite having no diplomatic relations with its foe.

“Currently we don’t see any ground for these talks, until we can get past the current crisis,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters in Oman’s capital Muscat.

The process, he said, had been halted “due to the specific conditions of the region”.

Iran fired 200 missiles at Israel on October 1 in what it said was retaliation for the killing of Tehran-aligned operator leaders in the region and a general in Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.

Israel has vowed to respond.

The Gulf sultanate of Oman has long mediated between Iran and the United States, which cut ties after the 1979 Islamic revolution.

The United States is Israel’s close ally and top provider of military assistance, while Iran backs the Palestinian operator group Hamas and Lebanese Hezbollah which are fighting Israel.

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