Russia and the United States held talks today, Thursday, on reviving the nuclear deal, and while Tehran confirmed good steps in the Vienna negotiations, US officials are expected to arrive in the Middle East to calm the concerns of Washington's allies about returning to the nuclear deal Iran signed with international powers in 2015.

The Russian representative in Vienna, Mikhail Alianov, said that he had held very detailed and useful discussions with the US envoy to Iran, Robert Malley, on reviving the nuclear deal.

Alianov revealed, prior to the meeting, that the issue of lifting US sanctions on Iran is an obstacle in the negotiations, indicating that the Iranians are demanding that the sanctions be eased as much as possible, while the Americans want to keep some sanctions that they consider have nothing to do with the nuclear agreement.

Meanwhile, the chief Iranian negotiator, Abbas Araghchi, confirmed holding bilateral meetings with delegations of the Nuclear Agreement Committee.

He explained that the committees to lift US sanctions and nuclear issues continue their work on drafting texts.

The head of the Office of the Iranian Presidency, Mahmoud Vaezi, confirmed that "very good steps" were taken in the Vienna talks "regarding the Iranian nuclear file.

"Given the complexity of these talks, what has been achieved so far gives rise to hope, and very good steps have been taken so far," Vaezi said.

He added, "The extremists inside the United States, as well as the Zionist entity, are seeking to thwart these talks, and some countries in the region are seeking to do so as well, but what is important is that we work to make them successful."

He said that the government's policy in the Vienna talks "is to avoid rushing, and to avoid wasting opportunities at the same time."

The third round of talks of the Joint Committee on the Nuclear Agreement began in Vienna on Tuesday, and continues today, Thursday.

Washington Allies

For his part, US President Joe Biden said that he would work closely with Washington's allies to confront the threats posed by Iran and North Korea's nuclear programs with "diplomacy and strict deterrence."

Bloomberg reported that the Biden administration will send officials to the Middle East to calm allies' concerns about the talks.

 In an interview with NBC, US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that he had personally spoken to his Israeli counterpart about the nuclear deal with Iran and had met him several times virtually.

He added that the Israeli National Security Adviser will visit Washington this week to discuss the common strategic goal of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, and to discuss any tactical differences.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that Iran poses challenges and concerns because of its destabilizing activities in the region.

Blinken added that the Iranian nuclear program had raised concerns in the international community for years.