Netanyahu Rushes to Washington After First U.S.–Iran Muscat Nuclear Talks

This scramble echoes Henry Kissinger’s 1973 shuttle diplomacy, when regional actors raced to shape U.S.–Arab cease-fire terms before facts hardened, and it revives the 2013 back-channel Oman talks that birthed the JCPOA. The pattern is familiar: Washington alternates coercion—carrier groups, sanctions—with narrow nuclear bargains, while Israel seeks broader curbs on Iranian power projection. Over the last three decades, every détente (1994 Agreed Framework, 2015 JCPOA) emerged only when the U.S. signaled willingness to compartmentalize issues; allies then feared abandonment. Whether this week’s maneuvering becomes another milestone or a footnote depends on whether Trump accepts a limited pact: a signature could freeze enrichment for a few years yet cement Iran’s regional missile reach, reshaping Middle-East deterrence equilibriums well into the 22nd century. Conversely, failure could reset the cycle toward escalation, illustrating how great-power diplomacy still hinges on tight personal timetables and naval theatrics despite a century of multilateral institution-building.