Iran hardliners frame Oman talks as win, defend Khamenei's role

Early on Sunday, dissident lawyer and civil activist Hassan Younesi posted on X that he had heard “some groups and organizations stationed at the embassy building … have been ordered to evacuate it.” The post quickly drew attention, partly because Younesi’s father, Ali Younesi, served as intelligence minister under reformist President Mohammad Khatami.

Hours later, however, Younesi deleted the post and published a follow-up, saying he had been contacted by what he called “responsible authorities” who denied the reports and said his post had created the mistaken impression that preliminary steps were being taken to prepare the embassy for a handover.

Such deletions by political activists and media figures—often under pressure from security agencies—are not uncommon in Iran.

Some users suggested that a potential handover could pave the way for American investments in Iran, especially after President Masoud Pezeshkian commented recently that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei had “no objection” to American investors entering the Iranian market.

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“Why would Trump push for direct talks unless it’s about reopening the embassy?” one user posted. “How else can US companies invest here?”

Former Israeli official and spokesperson Ben Sabeti also weighed in on X: “Iran makes cheap gestures toward @POTUS for the success of negotiations? There are reports about the US Embassy in Tehran being vacated for the first time since 1979. Is the regime also ready to make nuclear concessions?”

Meanwhile, Iranian media—highly constrained by censorship—picked up Younesi’s now-deleted post, but offered minimal commentary. “If true, this is a very meaningful step,” read a brief article titled What’s the story of the evacuation of the US Embassy building? published by Rouydad24 on Sunday. Fararu, another popular online outlet, published a gallery of recent photos showing foreign tourists visiting the former embassy, under the headline US Embassy in Tehran Draws Attention Again on Day of Talks—without offering any further remarks.

The US embassy takeover forty-six years ago

Islamist students occupied the embassy in November 1979. The students held tens of American diplomats and other staff hostage for 444 days. The embassy compound, which the students called “Den of Spies”, however, has been used as a base by IRGC-affiliated groups, including the Basij militia and its affiliated Daneshjoo (Student) News Agency.

Other parts of the building were converted into a museum and opened to the public in recent years. The Swiss embassy has represented US interests in Iran in the past forty-six years.

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Calls for normalization of relations and re-opening of the embassy

In recent years, various Iranian political and media figures have supported the idea of restoring diplomatic ties with the United States and returning the embassy building after decades of occupation.

Most recently, reformist politician and cleric Mohsen Rohami suggested in an interview published by Khabar Online that Iran and the United States could re-open their embassies and that higher officials than foreign ministers could sit at the negotiation table.

“This will have a positive psychological impact, besides its practical outcome, on our society and neighbors,” Khabar Online on Sunday quoted Rohami, who served as the legal deputy of Pezeshkian’s campaign last year, as saying.

Back in August 2024, Mehdi Ghazanfari, head of the National Development Fund, called for the reestablishment of consular relations with the United States. He controversially blamed the Communist Tudeh Party for provoking the 1979 embassy seizure and urged the Pezeshkian administration to act fast before what he called his political rivals' honeymoon with him ended.

His suggestion was echoed by some other politicians and public figures including Mohammad-Hossein Khoshvaght, a former official of the Islamic Guidance Ministry and managing director of Fararu. Khoshvaght has close ties to Khamenei’s household through the marriage of his sister to Khamenei’s eldest son, Mostafa.

Khoshvaght contended that normalization of relations could benefit both countries. "An Iran that has normal relations with the United States is a nightmare for Russia and Israel; for Putin, an Iran with nuclear weapons is less dangerous than an Iran that has normal relations with the United States!" he wrote on X.

In a 2015 interview with The Guardian, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani said reopening the embassy was “not impossible” if both sides changed their behavior. Similarly, in a 2014 interview with Swiss TV during the Davos Forum, President Hassan Rouhani said animosity with the United States could eventually turn into friendship.

The talks took place on Saturday and were led by Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.

While both sides described the exchange as “positive and constructive,” Iranians interviewed anonymously by Iran International or in the form of messages to its submission service questioned the impact of the discussions on their lives.

“This negotiation won’t lower prices or fix the economy,” said one citizen in a video message showing a small grocery purchase costing over ten million rials (around $11).

“Even if billions are unfrozen, not a single rial will reach the people. It’s all in the name of the people, but for the benefit of the regime,” another added.

Iran's economy has been in crisis since 2018, when Trump exited the JCPOA nuclear deal and imposed heavy sanctions on Iran. Tens of millions subsist at poverty level, with workers making around $120 a month.

Some pointed to systemic mismanagement and repression as the root of Iran’s crises, not international sanctions. They criticized the West for engaging diplomatically with a government they believe is at its weakest.

“Why negotiate when the regime is vulnerable?” asked one voice message. “Why not support the Iranian people and end this nightmare?”

The move toward talks, despite Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s longstanding opposition to negotiations with what he has repeatedly called a untrustworthy United States, was seen by some as an act of desperation.

“Khamenei once said Qasem Soleimani’s shoes were worth more than Trump,” said a citizen to Iran International, referring to the IRGC commander killed in 2020 on Trump's orders. “Now he negotiates with the man he called Soleimani’s killer.”

As Trump continues to press for a new deal—recently warning that Iran must comply or face consequences—many Iranians say the clerical rulers have caved to external pressure for the sake of survival.

“They refused American vaccines during COVID, but now they’re ready to shake Trump’s hand to stay in power,” said another.

Several messages also highlighted a growing sense that the only path to change may be confrontation. “We’re even ready for war,” said one citizen. “If that’s what it takes to end this regime.”

Images circulating online captured public sentiment, including a Tehran banner reading: “With or without a deal, this executioner republic will fall by the will of the Iranian people.”

“In my view, for a first session, it was a constructive meeting,” Araghchi said in remarks published by Iranian media after the talks.

“It was conducted in a calm and very respectful environment. No inappropriate language was used, and both parties demonstrated their intent to pursue these negotiations toward an agreement from an equal footing.”

The meeting, facilitated through shuttle diplomacy by Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, lasted about two and a half hours, he added.

Araghchi confirmed that Busaidi moved between the Iranian and American delegations four times to relay messages.

The Iranian official said that Tehran is not interested in drawn-out or symbolic dialogue. “We and the other side both believe in avoiding time-wasting negotiations. The US also indicated that it seeks a fair and timely agreement,” he added.

A second session is expected to be held next Saturday. Araghchi said while Oman will continue to host the process, the physical location may change.

The White House also described the exchange as a rare moment of diplomacy amid longstanding tensions.

US and Iranian officials held “very positive and constructive” talks in Muscat on Saturday, the White House said in a statement.

Special Presidential Envoy Steven Witkoff, accompanied by Ambassador Ana Escrogima, met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in talks hosted by Oman’s foreign minister.

“Special Envoy Witkoff underscored to Dr. Araghchi that he had instructions from President Trump to resolve our two nations’ differences through dialogue and diplomacy, if that is possible. These issues are very complicated, and Special Envoy Witkoff’s direct communication today was a step forward in achieving a mutually beneficial outcome,” added the statement.

By publicly extending an olive branch to American investors, Iranian officials maybe testing Washington’s appetite for a broader détente—one that moves beyond nuclear containment toward economic normalization. Whether this message reflects a genuine shift or strategic posturing, and whether it leads to meaningful progress, will likely depend on what both sides are prepared to offer in talks that began in Oman on April 12.

However, a wide array of US sanctions, combined with deeply unfavorable conditions inside Iran, would make investment by the US—or any developed country—extremely difficult.

A bigger deal than 2015?

Recent comments by President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi suggest that Iran is seeking more than relief from secondary US sanctions—reimposed after Washington’s 2018 exit from the JCPOA—and is also pushing for the removal of primary sanctions that have long restricted American trade and investment in Iran.

In May 2018, President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States from the JCPOA nuclear agreement between Iran and world powers and reimposed the secondary US sanctions that had been lifted under the deal. These sanctions aim to penalize any third parties breaking US restrictions on Iran.

Under current conditions, with both primary and secondary sanctions in place, no US company or individual is permitted to invest in Iran. Any such investment would only be possible after a nuclear agreement is reached and Iran begins implementing its commitments. Washington is unlikely to lift all sanctions upfront without Tehran first dismantling at least part of its uranium enrichment infrastructure and reducing or transferring its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

What Iranian officials said about US investment

In October, President Pezeshkian said Iran needs at least $100 billion in foreign investment to reach an annual economic growth rate of eight percent. He emphasized that improving foreign relations is key to attracting such investment. Iran has averaged less than 3% annual growth throughout the 46 years of clerical government.

In a more pointed message this week, Pezeshkian said that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has “no objection to American investors” entering the Iranian market. “Let them come and invest,” he said. “But we oppose plotting, regime change efforts, and destructive policies. Iran is not a place for conspiracies or espionage followed by assassinations. [All] investors are welcome to invest in our country.”

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reinforced this line in a Washington Post op-ed, arguing that the onus is on Washington to allow American companies to tap into what he described as a “trillion-dollar opportunity” in Iran, though he did not offer specifics.

While Khamenei has not commented on the talks or investment prospects, as Iran’s top decision-maker on foreign policy, he has authorized indirect negotiations with Washington and is expected to be closely involved in determining their scope and terms.

What type of US sanctions on Iran are in place?

After the 2015 nuclear deal the US lifted most of nuclear-related secondary sanctions. However, the primary US sanctions—which date back as far as the 1980s and ban nearly all trade and financial dealings between US persons and Iran—remained in force even after the deal.

These sanctions made it virtually impossible for American companies to invest in or trade with Iran, even during the brief JCPOA implementation period, unless they obtained special licenses from the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

For instance, Boeing was able to sign an agreement with Iran in 2016 to sell commercial aircraft after receiving a special OFAC license under the Obama administration. The company could not have even provided maintenance services without such an exemption under regulations like the Iranian Transactions Regulations (ITR).

Much to the dismay of Iran, Boeing’s aircraft were never delivered, and the license was revoked after the Trump administration exited the JCPOA.

Similar restrictions under the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), enforced by the US Commerce Department, also prevented non-US companies like Airbus from selling aircraft to Iran if they contained more than 10 percent US-origin components—unless licensed by OFAC.

Domestic impediments to investments

Beyond sanctions, one of the most significant barriers to American and broader international investment in Iran is the structure of its state-controlled economy. The system is riddled with opaque regulations, inconsistent enforcement, and non-transparent business practices. Key sectors are dominated by economic conglomerates affiliated with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), creating an uneven playing field and discouraging foreign entrants.

Iran’s economy is effectively closed, especially when it comes to consumer-facing industries. Even domestic investors face serious risks due to unclear rules, political interference, and limited legal protections. While foreign companies can occasionally secure contracts for state-backed infrastructure projects—such as revamping oil and gas facilities—these are tightly controlled by government-linked entities and offer little access to Iran’s broader market. This model does not allow for the kind of real, diversified investment that would benefit Iran’s private sector or broader population.

A nuclear agreement, while potentially reducing the immediate risk of conflict and unlocking limited economic engagement, is not enough to attract serious Western investment. For that to happen, Iran would need to implement deeper reforms. This includes recalibrating its foreign policy, scaling back the IRGC’s grip on the economy, and creating a more transparent and rules-based business environment. Without such changes, the prospect of meaningful, long-term foreign investment will remain remote.

The talks should be treated as a national decision rather than a partisan initiative, said the former Deputy Speaker of Iran’s Parliament Ali Motahari.

“These talks are a decision by the entire system and must not be portrayed as imposed by one faction,” said Motahari, a conservative politician known for outspoken views, in an interview with Rouydad24 on Saturday.

Motahari pointed to the 2015 nuclear agreement as an example of what could be achieved through engagement but also how easily it could unravel.

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“In the two years the JCPOA was implemented, we saw single-digit inflation and higher economic growth,” he said. “Let’s not allow partisan competition sabotage this round.”

The outcome of this round would signal whether “the negotiations are on a constructive track and whether the other side seeks a fair resolution or talks from a position of dominance,” he said.

From the Reformist camp, a former official also called for sidelining powerful domestic actors who benefit from Iran’s continued isolation.

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“To advance negotiations and end sanctions, the government must disarm the so-called sanctions profiteers,” said Mohammad Hashemi, the brother of former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, in an interview with Khabar Online website.

Hashemi warned that these groups, though few in number, wield significant influence and have actively worked to destabilize the new government.

“Their power lies in chaos. Without confronting them, real progress is impossible,” he added.

He also offered a cautious assessment of US President Donald Trump.

“Trump has no credible track record. He tore up the nuclear deal and ordered the killing of IRGC commander Qasem Soleimani,” Hashemi said.

“But he’s also a businessman, not a warmonger. He prefers deals over war.”