Iran | Pakistan

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump opened the foreign-policy portion of his State of the Union address tonight with a carefully calibrated message on Iran, stating that his “preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy” while warning he would “never” allow Tehran to acquire a nuclear weapon. The formulation, which projected readiness for talks while keeping the option of military force deliberately ambiguous, reflected his broader doctrine of “peace through strength.” US President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address in the House Chamber of the US Capitol in Washington, DC, US on February 24, 2026. — Reuters Trump argued that a rebuilt US military and higher defence spending by Nato allies had strengthened Washington’s hand. At the same time, he asserted that Iran was developing missiles capable of reaching the United States and complained: “We haven’t heard those secret words (from Iran): ‘We will never have a nuclear weapon.’” He blamed Tehran for pursuing a “sinister nuclear pro...

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday that a nuclear deal was “within reach”, ahead of talks with the United States scheduled for later this week. “We have a historic opportunity to strike an unprecedented agreement that addresses mutual concerns and achieves mutual interests,” said Araghchi, in a post on the social media site X. He added that a deal was “within reach, but only if diplomacy is given priority”. The talks are set to take place on Thursday in Geneva, a senior US official said on Monday, with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner slated to meet with an Iranian delegation for the negotiations. The two countries resumed negotiations earlier this month as the US builds up its military capability in the Middle East. Iran has threatened to strike US bases in the region if it is attacked. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi said on Tuesday Iran is ready to take any necessary steps to reach a deal with the US. “We are ready to reach an agreement as soon as possible....

Iran said on Monday that any attack by the United States, including limited strikes, would be an “act of aggression” that would precipitate a response, after US President Donald Trump said he was considering a limited strike on Iran. “With respect to your first question concerning the limited strike, I think there is no limited strike,” foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said at a briefing in Tehran attended by an AFP journalist. “An act of aggression would be regarded as an act of aggression. Period. “And any state would react to an act of aggression as part of its inherent right of self-defence ferociously so that’s what we would do.” Trump said on Friday he was considering a limited strike if Tehran did not reach a deal with the US. “I guess I can say I am considering that,” he replied following a question from reporters. The two countries concluded a second round of indirect talks in Switzerland on Tuesday under Omani mediation, against the backdrop of a major US military build-up in the region. Fu...

Iran agreed a secret 500 million euro ($589 million) arms deal with Russia to acquire thousands of advanced shoulder-fired missiles, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. The agreement, signed in Moscow in December, commits Russia to deliver 500 man-portable “Verba” launch units and 2,500 “9M336” missiles over three years, the FT said, citing leaked Russian documents seen by the FT and several people familiar with the deal. Reuters could not immediately verify the report. Under the deal, the deliveries are scheduled in three tranches, running from 2027 through 2029, the FT said. The deal was negotiated between Russian state arms exporter Rosoboronexport and the Moscow representative of Iran’s Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL), the FT claimed. Tehran formally requested the systems last July, according to a contract seen by the FT. In June last year, US forces struck Iran’s three main nuclear sites as the country joined Israel’s military campaign against Iran. President Donald Trump said...

US envoy Steve Witkoff said on Saturday that President Donald Trump is questioning why Iran has not “capitulated” in the face of Washington’s military build-up aimed at pressuring them into a nuclear deal. The United States and Iran this week resumed Oman-mediated talks in Geneva aimed at averting the possibility of military action, after Washington dispatched two aircraft carriers, jets and weaponry to the region to back its warnings. In a Fox News interview with Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara, Witkoff said the president was “curious” about Iran’s position after he had warned them of severe consequences in the event they failed to strike a deal. “I don’t want to use the word ‘frustrated’, because he understands he has plenty of alternatives, but he’s curious as to why they haven’t… I don’t want to use the word ‘capitulated’, but why they haven’t capitulated,” he said. “Why, under this pressure, with the amount of seapower and naval power over there, why haven’t they come to us and said, ‘We profess we don’t wa...

• Trump tells reporters 32,000 killed during last month’s nationwide protests; UN expert puts toll at 20,000 • Pezeshkian says Tehran will not bow to pressure as threat of war looms large TEHRAN: The Iranian government has demanded evidence after the US President Donald Trump told reporters that 32,000 people were killed during last month’s nationwide protests in the Islamic Republic, Al Jazeera reported on Saturday. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the government released a list of 3,117 people, including about 200 security personnel, whom he described as “victims of recent terrorist operation”. “If anyone disputes accuracy of our data, please share any evidence,” the diplomat, who has previously stated that 690 people on the list were “terrorists” armed and funded by the US and Israel, wrote on X. His comments came as the threat of war looms increasingly large over the country and potentially the region, with Serbia on Saturday becoming the latest country to call on all its citizens to immediatel...

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Saturday that his country would not bow its head to pressure from world powers amid nuclear talks with the United States. “World powers are lining up to force us to bow our heads … but we will not bow our heads despite all the problems that they are creating for us,” Pezeshkian said in a speech carried live by state TV. The comments come after US Pre­si­dent Donald Trump said he was considering a limited strike on Iran after ordering a major naval build-up in the Middle East aimed at pressuring Tehran to reach a deal to curb its nuclear programme. The latest warning came after Iran’s foreign minister said a draft proposal for an agreement with Washington would be ready within days, following negotiations bet­ween the two sides in Geneva earlier this week. Trump had suggested on Thursday that “bad things” would happen if Tehran did not strike a deal within 10 days, a deadline he later extended to 15 days. Asked by a reporter on Friday whether he was contemplating a l...

US President Donald Trump said he was considering a limited strike on Iran after ordering a major naval buildup in the Middle East aimed at heaping pressure on Tehran to cut a deal to curb its nuclear programme. The latest threat came after Iran’s foreign minister said a draft proposal for an agreement with Washington would be ready in a matter of days following negotiations between the two sides in Geneva earlier this week. Trump had suggested on Thursday that “bad things” would happen if Tehran did not strike a deal within 10 days, which he subsequently extended to 15. Asked by a reporter on Friday whether he was contemplating a limited military strike, Trump answered: “The most I can say — I am considering it.” After the talks in Geneva, Tehran said the two sides had agreed to submit drafts of a potential agreement, which Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told US media would be the “next step”. “I believe that in the next two, three days, that would be ready, and after final confirmation by my superi...

The White House warned on Wednesday that Iran would be “wise” to do a deal with the United States as President Donald Trump once again hinted at military action. The two sides recently resumed indirect talks, mediated by Oman, after Trump repeatedly threatened military action against Iran over a deadly crackdown on protesters last month. A previous attempt at negotiations collapsed when Israel launched surprise strikes on Iran last June, beginning a 12-day war that Washington briefly joined to bomb Iranian nuclear sites. “Iran would be very wise to make a deal with President Trump and with his administration,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters. On Wednesday, Trump again suggested the United States might strike Iran in a post on his Truth Social site, with a US military buildup underway in the Middle East. He warned Britain against giving up sovereignty over the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean, saying that the archipelago’s Diego Garcia airbase might be needed were Iran not to agre...

The United States will deter Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons “one way or the other”, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright warned on Wednesday. US President Donald Trump “believes firmly we cannot have a nuclear-armed Iran,” Wright told reporters in Paris on the sidelines of meetings of the International Energy Agency. “They’ve been very clear about what they would do with nuclear weapons. It’s entirely unacceptable,” Wright said. “So one way or the other, we are going to end, deter Iran’s march towards a nuclear weapon,” he added. US and Iranian officials held talks in Geneva on Tuesday aimed at averting the possibility of US military intervention to curb Tehran’s nuclear programme. Iran said following the talks that they had agreed on “guiding principles” for a deal to avoid conflict. US Vice President JD Vance, however, said Tehran had not yet acknowledged all of Washington’s red lines.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday the latest talks with the United States saw them agree on “a set of guiding principles” that would pave the way for a deal. “Ultimately, we were able to reach broad agreement on a set of guiding principles, based on which we will move forward and begin working on the text of a potential agreement,” Araghchi told state TV. “I can say that, compared with the previous round, fully serious discussions were raised and the atmosphere was more constructive,” he added. Tehran and Washington held on Tuesday a second round of negotiations — which began earlier this month — after talks last year collapsed following Israel’s attack on Iran in June, which triggered a 12-day war. That war saw the United States briefly join Israel with strikes on key Iranian nuclear sites. The latest talks were held after Washington deployed an aircraft carrier group to the Middle East following Iran’s deadly crackdown last month on anti-government protests, first sparked by economic ha...

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he would be involved “indirectly” in high-stakes talks between Iran and the US over Tehran’s nuclear program set for Tuesday in Geneva, adding he believed Tehran wanted to make a deal. “I’ll be involved in those talks, indirectly. And they’ll be very important,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One. Tensions are soaring ahead of the talks, with the US deploying a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East. The US military is preparing for the possibility of a sustained military campaign if the talks do not succeed, US officials have told Reuters. Asked about the prospects for a deal, Trump said Iran has long sought a tough posture in negotiations but learned the consequences of that approach last summer when the US bombed Iranian nuclear sites. Trump suggested Tehran was motivated this time to negotiate. “I don’t think they want the consequences of not making a deal,” Trump said. Washington pushes Tehran to forego enrichment Prior to the US strikes in June, U...

Iran said on Monday that the United States’s position on Iran’s nuclear programme “has moved towards a more realistic one”, a day ahead of a second round of US-Iranian talks in Geneva. Tehran’s foreign minister arrived in Geneva for the new round of indirect negotiations with the US, as the Revolutionary Guards began military drills in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping lane for oil and gas. The two sides recently resumed indirect talks, mediated by Oman, after US President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened military action against Iran over a deadly crackdown on protesters last month. A previous attempt at negotiations collapsed when Israel launched surprise strikes on Iran, beginning a 12-day war that Washington briefly joined to bomb Iranian nuclear sites. “A cautious assessment is that, from the discussions that have taken place in Muscat to date, at least what we have been told is that the US position on the Iranian nuclear issue has moved towards a more realistic one,” said foreign ministry spokesma...

Iran is pursuing a nuclear agreement with the United States that delivers economic benefits for both sides, an Iranian diplomat was reported as saying on Sunday, days before a second round of talks between Tehran and Washington. Iran and the US renewed negotiations earlier this month to tackle their decades-long dispute over Tehran’s nuclear programme and avert a new military confrontation. The US has dispatched a second aircraft carrier to the region and is preparing for the possibility of a sustained military campaign if the talks do not succeed, US officials have told Reuters. “For the sake of an agreement’s durability, it is essential that the US also benefits in areas with high and quick economic returns,” foreign ministry deputy director for economic diplomacy Hamid Ghanbari said, according to the semi-official Fars news agency. Iran has threatened retaliation against any US attack, but the official struck a conciliatory note on Sunday. “Common interests in the oil and gas fields, joint fields, mining i...

MUNICH - The son of Iran’s toppled former monarch on Saturday told a mass rally in Munich he is ready to lead Iran’s “transition,” as demonstrators demanded the overthrow of Iran’s rulers.

US President Donald Trump on Friday embraced potential regime change in Iran and declared that “tremendous power” will soon be in the Middle East, as the Pentagon sent a second aircraft carrier to the region. Trump’s military moves and tough talk come even as Washington and Tehran seek to revive diplomacy over Tehran’s long-running nuclear dispute with the West. Asked if he wanted regime change in Iran, Trump responded that it “seems like that would be the best thing that could happen.” He declined to share who he wanted to take over Iran, but said, “there are people.” “For 47 years, they’ve been talking and talking and talking,” Trump said after a military event at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. “In the meantime, we’ve lost a lot of lives while they talk. Legs blown off, arms blown off, faces blown off. We’ve been going on for a long time.” Washington wants nuclear talks with Iran to also cover the country’s ballistic missiles, support for armed groups around the region and the treatment of the Iranian people. ...

The Pentagon is sending an aircraft carrier from the Caribbean to the Middle East, US officials said on Friday, a move that would put two carriers in the region as tensions soar between the United States and Iran. The Gerald R. Ford carrier, the United States’ newest and the world’s largest carrier, has been operating in the Caribbean with its escort ships and took part in operations in Venezuela earlier this year. Asked why a second aircraft carrier was headed to the Middle East, US President Donald Trump said: “In case we don’t make a deal, we’ll need it … if we need it, we’ll have it ready.” One of the officials, who was speaking on condition of anonymity, said the carrier would take at least a week to reach the Middle East. The Gerald R. Ford will join the Abraham Lincoln carrier, several guided-missile destroyers, fighter jets and surveillance aircraft that have been moved to the Middle East in recent weeks. The United States most recently had two aircraft carriers in the area last year, when it carried ...

President Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday appreciated efforts for easing tensions and promoting regional peace, warning that any military escalation involving Iran could destabilise the Gulf region, South and Western Asia. He said this while addressing a ceremony hosted by the Iranian embassy in Islamabad on the 47th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. “Any instability involving Iran, or any attempt to resolve issues through military means, carries grave risks. Such actions could … undermine global peace, and cause serious harm to the global economy. The stakes are far too high for confrontation,” President Zardari said. He further stated that Pakistan opposed unilateral sanctions and coercive measures, including against Iran, and believed that “peaceful engagement best serves regional and global security”. “Pakistan welcomes efforts aimed at easing tensions and encourages continued dialogue among relevant parties in a constructive spirit, with the objective of promoting peace and stability in the regio...

ISLAMABAD - President Asif Ali Zardari on Wednesday underscored the urgent need for de-escalation and diplomatic engagement in the region, cautioning that any military confrontation involving Iran would have far-reaching and destabilising consequences for the Gulf, South Asia and the broader West Asian region.

Iran’s missile capabilities are its red line and are not a subject to be negotiated, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader said on Wednesday, as Tehran and Washington eye a new round of talks to avert conflict. US and Iranian diplomats held indirect talks last week in Oman, amid a regional naval buildup by the US threatening Iran. “The Islamic republic’s missile capabilities are non-negotiable,” Ali Shamkhani said, according to state media, while appearing in a march commemorating the 47th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. Washington has long sought to extend talks on Iran’s nuclear capabilities to cover its missile programme as well. Iran has said it is prepared to discuss curbs on its nuclear programme in return for the lifting of sanctions, but has repeatedly ruled out linking the issue to other questions, including missiles. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to use a meeting with Trump in Washington on Wednesday to push for any US-Iran deal to include limitations on Tehran’s missil...