DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) 鈥� A second U.S. aircraft carrier is operating in Mideast waters ahead of the next round of talks between and the United States over , satellite photos analyzed Tuesday by The Associated Press showed.
The operation of the USS Carl Vinson and its strike group in the Arabian Sea comes as overnight into Tuesday. American officials repeatedly have linked the monthlong U.S. campaign against the Houthis under President Donald Trump as a means to pressure Iran in the negotiations.
Questions remain over where the weekend talks between the countries will be held after officials initially identified Rome as hosting the negotiations, only for . American officials so far haven't said where the talks will be held, though Trump did call on Tuesday while the ruler was on a trip to the Netherlands.
The stakes of the negotiations couldn鈥檛 be higher for the two nations . Trump repeatedly has threatened targeting Iran鈥檚 nuclear program if a deal isn鈥檛 reached. Iranian officials with their stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels.
But even Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reportedly described the first round of talks as going 鈥渨ell,鈥� while still couching his remarks Tuesday.
, who represented America in last weekend's talks in , separately signaled that the Trump administration may be looking at terms of the 2015 nuclear deal that the president unilaterally withdrew from in 2018 as a basis for these negotiations. He described the talks last weekend as 鈥減ositive, constructive, compelling.鈥�
鈥淭his is going to be much about verification on the enrichment program, and then ultimately verification on weaponization,鈥� Witkoff told Fox News on Monday night. 鈥淭hat includes missiles, the type of missiles that they have stockpiled there. And it includes the trigger for a bomb.鈥�
He added: 鈥淲e鈥檙e here to see if we can solve this situation diplomatically and with dialogue.鈥�
Vinson joins Truman as second US aircraft carrier in Mideast
Satellite photos taken Monday by the European Union's Copernicus program showed the Vinson, which is based out of San Diego, California, operating northeast of Socotra, an island off Yemen that sits near the mouth of the Gulf of Aden. The Vinson is accompanied by the Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser USS Princeton and two Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers, the USS Sterett and the USS William P. Lawrence.
The U.S. ordered the Vinson to the Mideast to back up the USS Harry S. Truman, which has been launching airstrikes against the Houthis since the American campaign started March 15. Footage released by the Navy showed the Vinson preparing ordinance and launching F-35 and F/A-18 fighter jets off its deck in recent days.
The U.S. Navy's Bahrain-based 5th Fleet, which oversees the Mideast, declined to discuss details of the Vinson's operations. However, hours after the AP's report, the U.S. military's Central Command posted videos from the two carriers on the social platform X saying there had been 鈥�24/7 strikes鈥� on the Houthis by the two carriers.
Khamenei responds
The Vinson's arrival came as Khamenei, while speaking to high-ranking government officials in Tehran on Tuesday, endorsed the progress of the talks.
鈥淲e shouldn鈥檛 be overly optimistic about this dialogue, nor overly pessimistic," the 85-year-old Khamenei said. "The first steps have been taken well and executed properly. From here on, the process should be followed carefully. The red lines are clear 鈥� both for the other side and for us. We may or may not reach a result, but either way, it鈥檚 worth pursuing.鈥�
He also urged officials 鈥渘ot to tie the country鈥檚 affairs鈥� to the talks, which are scheduled to have a second round on Saturday.
鈥淥f course, we don鈥檛 fully trust them 鈥� we know who we鈥檙e dealing with,鈥� Khamenei added. 鈥淏ut we are optimistic about our own capabilities.鈥�
Witkoff suggests 3.67% uranium enrichment for Iran
Meanwhile, Witkoff offered for the first time a specific enrichment level he'd like to see for Iran's nuclear program. Today, Tehran enriches uranium to up to 60% 鈥� a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels of 90%.
鈥淭hey do not need to enrich past 3.67%,鈥� Witkoff told Fox News. "In some circumstances, they鈥檙e at 60%, in other circumstances, 20%. That cannot be.
鈥淎nd you do not need to run, as they claim, a civil nuclear program where you鈥檙e enriching past 3.67%. So this is going to be much about verification on the enrichment program, and then ultimately verification on weaponization.鈥�
The 2015 nuclear deal Iran agreed to with world powers under President Barack Obama saw Tehran agree to drastically reduce its stockpile of uranium and only enrich up to 3.67% 鈥� enough for its nuclear power plant at Bushehr. Iran in exchange received access to frozen funds around the world, and sanctions were lifted on its crucial oil industry and other sectors.
Late Tuesday, Witkoff wrote on X that 鈥渁 deal with Iran will only be completed if it is a Trump deal.鈥�
鈥淚ran must stop and eliminate its nuclear enrichment and weaponization program,鈥� he wrote. 鈥淚t is imperative for the world that we create a tough, fair deal that will endure, and that is what President Trump has asked me to do.鈥�
Iran's Javan newspaper, which is believed to be close to its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, suggested in an editorial Tuesday that Tehran would be open to reducing its enrichment.
鈥淪omething that we have done before, why should we not carry it again and reach a deal?鈥� the editorial asked. "This is not called a withdrawal by Islamic Republic from its ideals anywhere in the world.鈥�
When Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018, however, he pointed at Iran's ballistic missile stockpile as one reason to leave the deal. Witkoff said any deal with Iran would have to include 鈥渕issiles, the type of missiles that they have stockpiled there and it includes the trigger for a bomb.鈥�
Iran relies on its ballistic missiles as a hedge against regional nations armed with advanced fighter jets and other American weaponry. Getting it to abandon its missile program likely will be difficult in negotiations.
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Associated Press writer Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.
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Additional AP coverage of the nuclear landscape:
Jon Gambrell, The Associated Press
