Decades of animosity between Iran and the United States are one of the main drivers of instability in the Middle East. Trump has previously taken a strong stand on Iran and particularly on a nuclear program which could lead to the development of atomic weapons. Iran says its nuclear aims are peaceful.

U.S. concerns about Iran developing nuclear weapons are not a complicated issue and can be resolved given Tehran's opposition to weapons of mass destruction, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Wednesday,

President Trump’s desire to engage in negotiations is a turnabout from his first term, when he often derided former President Barack Obama for agreeing to a nuclear deal with Iran.