Iranian official says US ‘maximalist’ demands stall face-to-face talks

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh adjusts his glasses as he talks during an interview with Associated Press at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, in Antalya, southern Turkey, Saturday, April 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Riza Ozel) 2026-04-18T13:20:52Z Antalya, Turkey (AP) — Iran is not yet ready to hold a new round of face-to-face talks with U.S. officials, a senior Iranian official said Saturday, citing Washington’s refusal to abandon “maximalist” demands on key issues. In an interview with The Associated Press on the margins of a diplomacy forum in Turkey, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh also said his country will not hand over its enriched uranium to the United States, rejecting claims made by U.S. President Donald Trump. “I can tell you that no enriched material is going to be shipped to United States,” Khatibzadeh said. “This is non-starter and I can assure you that while we are ready to address any concerns that we do have, we’re not going to accept things that are nonstarters.” On Friday, Trump said that the U.S. will go into Iran and “get all the nuclear dust,” referring to the 970 pounds (440 kilograms) of enriched uranium believed to be buried under nuclear sites badly damaged by U.S. military strikes last year. Khatibzadeh said there have been many exchanges of messages between the sides but accused the United States of holding firm on demands Iran deems to be excessive. “We are still not there yet to move on to an actual meeting because there are issues that the Americans have not yet abandoned their maximalist position,” Khatibzadeh said. Iran was seeking the finalization of a “framework agreement” before moving to an in-person meeting, he added. (