Inside the Fordow nuclear facility in Qom, northern Iran. (Source: AFP)

On May 8, US Middle East Coordinator Brett McGurk traveled to Oman to discuss with host officials the White House's potential response to Tehran's nuclear program.

At the same time, Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kan also traveled to Oman with his country's negotiating team, but did not have direct contact with US officials.

The two delegations were in separate locations and communicated with each other through Omani officials.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) estimates that Iran currently possesses 114.1 kg of uranium enriched to 60% purity, which is just a step away from nuclear weapons-grade (90% purity).

US officials have indirectly sent a message to the Iranian delegation that Washington will respond severely if Tehran reaches the 90% uranium enrichment level needed for nuclear weapons.

The United States on June 8 denied that it was making progress on a new nuclear deal with Iran. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the US National Security Council said Washington was closely monitoring Iran’s uranium enrichment activities and coordinating closely with US allies to de-escalate the situation in the region.

Iran began stepping up its nuclear activities in 2019, a year after the US under President Donald Trump withdrew from the nuclear deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - signed in 2015 between Iran and the P5+1 group (including the UK, US, Russia, France, China and Germany) - and restored sanctions.

Iran has always maintained that its uranium enrichment activities are in accordance with a law passed by the Iranian parliament in December 2020 to counter sanctions.

The law, called the “Strategic Action Plan,” allows the Islamic Republic to take steps to scale back IAEA monitoring activities and accelerate nuclear development activities beyond the limits set by the JCPOA.