Trump Admin Reportedly Makes Pick For Iran Nuclear Talks

The Trump administration has reportedly chosen a top State Department official, Michael Anton, to spearhead technical negotiations with Iran.

Anton will be directing the U.S. technical team in talks with Iran about its nuclear program, two U.S. officials familiar told Politico.

Anton is the director of policy planning staff for the State Department, his government biography said. He will reportedly be leading a team composed of around 12 people to negotiate a deal to restrict Iran’s nuclear program in return for relief from sanctions. (RELATED: Trump Admin’s Shifting Iran Stance Reveals Deeper Policy Fight Inside Washington, Experts Say)

Congratulations to Claremont Senior Fellow Michael Anton on being sworn in as the 33rd Director of Policy Planning at the State Department.

A scholar and strategist, Anton has been instrumental in defining an America First foreign policy and now brings that proven expertise to… pic.twitter.com/pOLNY4y2hl

— Claremont Institute (@ClaremontInst) January 21, 2025

He will direct the first round of discussions with Iranian officials this weekend before Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi meet for talks again next week in Rome, Politico reported, citing officials.

Prior to assuming the post, Anton was a Senior Fellow at the conservative Claremont Institute, according to his biography. He also lectured on Politics at Hillsdale College.

He held the posts of Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communication on the National Security Council (NSC) staff at the White House during the first Trump administration. (RELATED: JOHN TEICHERT: Iran’s Nuclear Capabilities Can Still Be Stopped)

Michael Anton, Policy Planning Director at State, will lead a team of about a dozen specialists to Oman to hold technical discussions with Iran, as Witkoff and Araghchi meet for the third time.

There remains ambiguity over what the US is willing to concede, esp. on enrichment. pic.twitter.com/ENKpSPhz8Y

— Gregory Brew (@gbrew24) April 24, 2025

Reuters first reported that Israel has not “ruled out” a restricted attack on Iran, citing an Israeli official and two more people familiar. President Donald Trump, however, has pushed for attempting a diplomatic resolution first.

The New York Times (NYT) reported earlier in April that Trump had pushed back against Israeli plans to strike Iran potentially as soon as May, according to officials and other sources.

“I think that Iran has a chance to have a great country and to live happily without death,” Trump told reporters, according to NYT. “That’s my first option. If there’s a second option, I think it would be very bad for Iran, and I think Iran is wanting to talk.” (RELATED: Trump Envoy Suggests One Out-Of-The-Box Way To ‘Reshape Russian-United States Relationship’ And Bring Stability)

The U.S. and Iran met in Rome on Easter weekend to negotiate Iran’s nuclear program. Anton attended the first round of talks with Witkoff, Politico noted.

“If Iran wants a civil nuclear program, they can have one, just like many other countries in the world,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told The Free Press in an interview Wednesday.  “And that is, they import enriched material.”

He emphasized, however, that Trump does not want Iran to have a nuclear weapon.