Iran says ready for ‘fair’ talks with US but not ‘under shadow of threats’

Iran’s overseas curate says rocket programme not up for dialog arsenic Trump says he’s sending much ships to the region.

Iran’s overseas curate says the state is acceptable for “fair and equitable” talks with the United States amid soaring tensions, arsenic US President Donald Trump refused to regularisation retired taking subject enactment against Tehran.

On a sojourn to Turkiye connected Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters that, “Iran has nary occupation with negotiations, but negotiations cannot instrumentality spot nether the shadiness of threats”.

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“I should besides authorities unequivocally that Iran’s antiaircraft and rocket capabilities – and Iran’s missiles – volition ne'er beryllium the taxable of immoderate negotiations,” Araghchi said during a quality league alongside his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan.

“The information of the Iranian radical is nary 1 else’s business, and we volition sphere and grow our antiaircraft capabilities to immoderate grade is indispensable to support the country.”

Tensions person been rising for weeks betwixt Tehran and Washington amid Trump’s repeated threats to onslaught Iran implicit a caller crackdown connected antigovernment protests and his propulsion to curtail the Iranian atomic programme.

Earlier this week, the US president said a “massive armada” – led by the USS Abraham Lincoln craft bearer – was moving towards Iran and was acceptable to usage “violence, if necessary” if Iranian leaders did not hold to negociate a atomic deal.

Speaking to reporters astatine the White House connected Friday, Trump said his medication was sending “a larger fig of ships” to Iran.

“And hopefully we’ll marque a deal,” helium said. “If we bash marque a deal, that’s good. If we don’t marque a deal, we’ll spot what happens.”

Reporting from Washington, DC, Al Jazeera’s Kimberly Halkett noted that Trump said helium gave Iran a deadline, but “only Iran knows what that deadline is”.

“So he’s near the satellite successful waiting, trying to find what the adjacent steps volition be,” Halkett said.

Trump, who successful 2018 unilaterally withdrew from a erstwhile woody that saw Iran hold to curb its atomic programme successful speech for a lifting of planetary sanctions, has been pressuring Iran to halt each uranium enrichment.

Washington has accused Tehran of seeking a atomic limb – a assertion Iranian leaders person repeatedly denied.

Amid the latest tensions, elder officials successful Tehran person repeatedly said they are unfastened to negotiations, but lone erstwhile Trump ends his subject threats against the country.

They besides person stressed that Iran’s equipped forces are ready to respond if attacked.

Meanwhile, determination allies including Turkiye, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia person been engaging successful diplomatic efforts to effort to forestall a subject confrontation betwixt Washington and Tehran.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan earlier connected Friday told his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian successful a telephone that Ankara was acceptable to play a “facilitator” relation betwixt the 2 sides.

Fidan, the Turkish overseas minister, besides said helium had agelong discussions connected the contented with US peculiar envoy Steve Witkoff connected Thursday and would support lines unfastened with Washington.

Speaking alongside Araghchi connected Friday, Fidan said US-Iran atomic negotiations indispensable restart and would pave the mode to lifting sanctions connected Iran.

“We telephone the parties to the negotiating table” to code the issues “one by one”, helium said.