US-Iran talks show 'some progress' as nuclear gaps persist, reports say

Negotiations between the United States and Iran have produced a measure of optimism, though the two sides remain far apart on major issues, The Jerusalem Post reported on Sunday, citing sources who spoke to the paper. The Post characterised the mood as "some optimism" set against what it described as major disagreements.

The Hebrew-language news channel News.co.il reported that regional figures say the talks have achieved "some progress", but that significant gaps are still open, chiefly over the nuclear question. The same report carried two accounts of the relationship between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump on the Iran file that do not sit easily together.

Two accounts of the Netanyahu and Trump relationship

According to News.co.il, an Israeli official said that Netanyahu and Trump see "eye to eye" on the Iranian issue. The official was not named in the report.

The same outlet also relayed a report by Barak Ravid, a journalist cited in connection with Channel 12, one of Israel's main television news broadcasters, that the two leaders held a sharp, pointed conversation against the background of recent developments. The report did not describe what was said during the call, who initiated it, or when it took place.

These two accounts are presented side by side in the reporting and are not reconciled. One portrays close agreement between the Israeli and American leaders on Iran; the other describes a tense exchange. It is possible for both to be accurate at once, for example if the leaders share a goal but differ on tactics or timing, but the reports themselves do not say so, and this article does not attempt to resolve the difference.

Why the nuclear issue is the sticking point

Both reports place the disagreements at the centre of the story, and News.co.il identifies the nuclear issue specifically as the main area where the gaps lie. Iran's nuclear programme has for years been the core point of friction between Tehran and Washington, and it is the issue Israeli governments have treated as their foremost security concern regarding Iran. That is the reason any movement in US-Iran contacts draws close attention in Israel, and why the state of coordination between Jerusalem and Washington is reported alongside news of the talks themselves.

Neither report specifies which elements of the nuclear file remain in dispute, or which issues, if any, have seen the progress the regional figures describe.

The Oman connection

The Jerusalem Post illustrated its report with a photograph of Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi shaking hands with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said of Oman in Muscat, the Omani capital, on June 23, 2026. Araqchi is Iran's top diplomat and a central figure in the country's foreign relations.

The image is the only reference to Oman in the material available. The reports seen here do not state where the current round of US-Iran contacts is taking place, whether they are direct or indirect, or whether any third country is facilitating them. Readers should not infer from the photograph alone that Oman is involved in the present negotiations.

Who is speaking

The claims in this story come from three distinct and largely anonymous sets of voices:

• Sources who spoke to The Jerusalem Post, who described some optimism alongside major disagreements.
• Regional figures cited by News.co.il, who said "some progress" had been made but that significant gaps remain, mainly on the nuclear issue.
• An Israeli official, also cited by News.co.il, who said Netanyahu and Trump are aligned on Iran.

In addition, the report of a pointed conversation between the two leaders is attributed to Barak Ravid of Channel 12 and was relayed by News.co.il. No on-the-record statement from the United States, Iran or the Israeli Prime Minister's Office appears in the material.

What the reports do not say

The available reporting leaves several basic questions open. It does not identify the negotiators on either side, the venue or format of the talks, or a timetable for any further rounds. It does not explain what "some progress" consists of, or which specific disagreements remain beyond the general reference to the nuclear issue.

On the Israeli side, the reports do not give the date or content of the conversation between Netanyahu and Trump described as sharp, nor do they say whether either office has confirmed or denied it. They also do not explain what developments prompted the call. Finally, the sources for the optimism are unnamed in both reports, and there is no official confirmation from Washington or Tehran in the material that the talks have advanced.