U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff is reported to be on his way to Southwest Asia, stopping in Israel on Feb 3 and possibly for a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Feb. 6. But, with Trump constantly threatening military action against Iran, if Tehran doesn’t agree to the deal he is demanding, nothing is certain until it actually happens.
Reuters, citing two unnamed senior Israeli officials, reported this morning that beginning on Feb. 3, Presidential representative Witkoff is expected in Israel for meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel’s military chief. A third Israeli official said Witkoff’s meetings will be preparatory ahead of U.S.-Iran talks possibly resuming, and would follow up on a weekend meeting by Israeli military chief Eyal Zamir with Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine in Washington.
According to Axios, Witkoff and Araghchi are expected to meet on Feb. 6 in Istanbul to discuss a possible nuclear deal, according to two unnamed but knowledgeable sources. A third source familiar with the planning said a meeting on Feb. 6 was “the best-case scenario” but cautioned that nothing is final until it happens.
But Iranian media backtracked on the possibility of a Witkoff-Araghchi meeting. Mehr News cited local Iranian media in the morning of Feb. 2 reporting that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had ordered the start of talks with the United States on the nuclear issue. Then it notes that Tasnim News later edited its news item, saying that the details of the talks are not definite, after having earlier reported that negotiations between Iran and the United States, with the participation of senior officials from both countries, will likely begin in the coming days.
