A senior advisor to Iran’s Supreme Leader said on Friday that ongoing indirect nuclear talks with the United States could provide an opportunity for progress, despite what he called unresolved global issues under US President Donald Trump.
“Trump’s cases remain unresolved after 100 days: Yemen, Gaza, Ukraine, the tariff war and budget deficit,” Ali Shamkhani wrote on X. “The Muscat talks may offer a chance for mutual success via transparency (ensuring no deviation), balance (lifting all sanctions), and rule of law (enrichment under intl. law).”


US President Donald Trump said he is open to meeting with Iran’s President or Supreme Leader, as Washington and Tehran continue indirect talks over Iran’s nuclear program.
“Sure,” Trump said in an interview with Time magazine when asked if he would be willing to meet Iran’s top leaders.
The comments come as the third round of indirect negotiations is scheduled to take place on Saturday in Oman. The talks, which began earlier this month, aim to revive diplomacy after years of tension following Trump’s 2018 decision to abandon the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers.
"I think we're going to make a deal with Iran. Nobody else could do that," he said during the interview.
Earlier this year, Trump reinstated his administration’s maximum pressure policy on Iran, while also expressing openness to dialogue.
In February he also said he was prepared to speak with his Iranian counterpart and voiced hope for a peaceful resolution. “I really want to see peace, and I hope that we're able to do that,” Trump said at the time. “They cannot have a nuclear weapon.”
Iran maintains that its nuclear program is peaceful, but Trump has warned of catastrophic consequences if a new deal is not reached swiftly. He has also said military action remains a possibility to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.
In the Time interview, Trump rejected reports that he had stopped Israel from launching strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, but said he preferred a diplomatic solution. “I didn’t stop them. But I didn’t make it comfortable for them, because I think we can make a deal without the attack,” he said. “It’s possible we’ll have to attack because Iran will not have a nuclear weapon.”
Asked if he was concerned that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu might draw the United States into a broader conflict, Trump replied, “No.”
US President Donald Trump said he is open to meeting with Iran’s President or Supreme Leader as part of efforts to engage in direct diplomacy.
“Sure,” Trump said in an interview with Time magazine when asked if he would be willing to meet Iran’s top leaders.
Trump also denied reports that he had stopped Israel from attacking Iranian nuclear sites but said he preferred diplomacy over military action.
“I didn’t stop them. But I didn't make it comfortable for them, because I think we can make a deal without the attack,” Trump said. “It’s possible we’ll have to attack because Iran will not have a nuclear weapon.”
Trump also dismissed concerns that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu might drag the US into a broader conflict, saying simply, “No.”

Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei should cleave toward a moderate approach toward the United States in ongoing talks, several prominent Iranian political commentators have suggested.
Instead of directly naming Khamenei, the commentaries were careful to use terms such as "leadership," "governance" and "decision-makers," as directly exhorting Iran's theocrat is mostly off-limits in public discourse.
Iranian nuclear scientist and former diplomat Ali Khorram, who served as Iran's ambassador to the UN headquarters in Geneva in the 80s, said in an interview with the pro-reform Arman Melli newspaper that Iran's leadership should take rational decisions which take into account future threats.
Khorram, who studied nuclear physics and international law in the United States, expressed optimism that US President Donald Trump could preside over a genuinely improved relationship
"Trump genuinely wants to improve relations between Tehran and Washington and elevate them to the level of friendship."
Reformist political commentator Abbas Abdi in an interview with pro-government reformist daily Etemad, said authorities should forge an agreement not just with the United States but with its own people.
"The people in Iran are no less important than an agreement with America" for the survival of the political establishment, he said.
Abdi highlighted the divide between the government and the nation, exacerbated by waves of protests since 2017 and the violent suppression of the demonstrators by security forces, and called for pluralism and improved governance.
"Almost certainly, the Iranian side has made a decision at the top level of the government to reach an agreement" with the United States, Abdi said, adding that the rapid progress in talks suggested that some essential agreements were already in place before the two sides met.
Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, the former chief of the Iranian parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, told the pro-reform website Fararu that Tehran must abandon certain taboos if it seeks genuine progress.
"If Iran does not break those taboos, any achievement in the negotiations will not last long," he said.
The politician has previously spoken extensively about the need to move beyond Tehran's anti-Americanism, its reliance on China and Russia and its acknowledgment of past mistakes in its relationship with the Iranian people.
Iran's primary challenge, Falahatpisheh added, is on the home front, warning that persistent tensions could become increasingly costly.

Camel-denominated blood money and minutes-long temporary marriages are among the peculiar features of a medieval theocratic legal system by which Iran systematically enforces second-class citizenship on women.
Iran’s Sharia-based legal system contains a litany of provisions that discriminate against women, particularly in the areas of criminal, family, and inheritance law.
The measures go far beyond state enforcement of the Islamic face veil, which has become a symbol of the system's attempt to control and dominate women for the Islamic Republic's near-half-century existence.
Under Iran’s interpretation of Shia Islamic law, the age of legal responsibility differs significantly between girls and boys. Girls are considered legally responsible at the age of 9 lunar years (approximately 8 years and 9 months), while boys reach legal responsibility at 15 lunar years.
This age disparity has been repeatedly criticized by child rights advocates and international organizations. Some have proposed that the age of criminal responsibility for both girls and boys be equal, with a minimum threshold of at least 18 years. However, no such legal reform has been enacted to date.
Moreover, in criminal proceedings, the testimony of two women is considered equivalent to that of one man in most cases.
The concept of blood money (diyeh)—financial compensation paid by an offender to the victim’s family in cases of murder or manslaughter—is also unequal.
The amount paid for a female victim is half of what is paid for a male victim. The base amount is determined annually by Iran's Chief Justice, based on the value of 100 camels.
In some cases, women may face harsher penalties than men. Women can receive the death penalty for killing their children, whereas the legal response is legally and practically often less when a man commits a similar crime.
In addition to legal punishment for murder or manslaughter, for instance, a woman who kills her child must pay blood money to the father. Fathers and paternal grandfathers, however, are exempt from paying blood money to the mother in such cases due to their sole legal entitlement to their children’s blood money.
Marriage, Polygamy and Divorce
Regardless of age, women require the consent of their father or paternal grandfather to enter into a first marriage. Men, however, face no such restriction.
Men are also legally permitted to engage in polygamy, with the possibility of marrying up to four wives simultaneously through a court order.
They may enter into temporary marriages (known as sigheh or mut'ah) for a fixed period—ranging from minutes to years—without court approval or official registration.
These marriages automatically dissolve when the agreed-upon time expires.
For divorce, men legally hold the unilateral right to dissolve a marriage at will. Women, on the other hand, must apply to a court and present proof of their husband’s failure to fulfil obligations such as providing housing, food or healthcare.
They must also demonstrate that they have fulfilled their own marital duties, including obedience to their husband in areas such as sex and permission to leave the home.
Iranian law allows men to prevent their wives from traveling or taking up certain jobs, unless the woman obtains a power of attorney from her husband—either at the time of marriage or afterward—granting her the right to travel, work or initiate divorce.
Guardianship and Custody
Fathers have exclusive legal guardianship over their children. Mothers can only obtain guardianship if the father is dead and the paternal grandfather does not object.
In divorce cases, mothers retain custody only until the child reaches age seven, after which custody typically reverts to the father. Once a girl reaches 9 and a boy reaches 15 (the ages of adulthood in Shia law), they may choose which parent they will live with.
However, the father - or paternal grandfather, if the father has passed away - continues to be the legal guardian of children, often maintaining control over key aspects of their lives.
Additionally, women automatically lose custody of their children if they remarry, as long as the father is still alive.
Inheritance
In inheritance, a woman’s share is half that of a male heir in comparable circumstances.
For example, a daughter inherits half the amount her brother does. A widow is entitled to one-eighth of her husband's estate if they had children, or one-fourth if childless. The remaining assets typically go to the husband’s family.
Israel received three new F-35I fighter jets on Thursday, bringing its fleet to 45 ahead of the third round of indirect nuclear talks between the United States and Iran.
The aircraft landed at Nevatim Airbase and joined the Israeli Air Force’s 140th Squadron, the military said.
The F-35s, widely considered the world's most advanced fighter jets, are part of an initial order of 50, with an additional 25 ordered last year amid rising regional tensions.







