Both the US and Iran have publicly expressed their satisfaction and positive assessment of the developments and results of the previous round of talks in Oman. That is a good sign. However, cautious optimism is still very necessary because in this second round of negotiations, the goodwill of both sides will begin to be truly tested.
The developments and results of the second round of negotiations will show whether the two sides are truly in the same direction towards an agreement or not and whether the goodwill for negotiation is necessary enough for both sides to reach an agreement with each other or not.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated his readiness to reach a new deal with Iran on Iran's nuclear issue but has threatened to join Israel in military attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities if Iran does not compromise with the US. It can be seen that Mr. Donald Trump currently needs a deal with Iran on Iran's nuclear issue to meet urgent domestic and foreign needs.
Iran also urgently needs to reach an agreement with the US on a solution to this problem because there are many difficulties and discomfort both internally and internationally, especially in the face of very fundamental changes compared to before in the political and security environment in the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf region.
In this second round of talks, the US and Iran must jointly answer two questions: whether to return to the agreement reached in 2015 or aim for a completely new agreement in both content and form and the question of establishing a so-called red line for each side, specifically here that Iran only does not manufacture nuclear weapons or must completely cancel the nuclear program. If we do not achieve a common understanding of both of the above contents, it is clear that the level of goodwill of both sides cannot be enough.
