Iran ready for nuclear talks in exchange for sanctions relief - FM

The director general of the UN nuclear watchdog says he will travel to Tehran in the coming weeks in order to prevent a disastrous clash between Iran and the United States over its disputed nuclear program.

"I will be traveling to Tehran in the coming weeks—specifically with the aim of getting Iran to clarify a number of unresolved issues as quickly as possible, in order to reduce the chances of heading toward confrontation, which would be truly catastrophic," Rafael Grossi told Argentina’s La Nacion network.

He said as of today, Iran does not have nuclear weapons. "But Iran does have many of the pieces of the puzzle, let’s put it that way, and it has the amount of nuclear material needed."

Grossi said Iran already has an amount that the IAEA estimates is sufficient for about six or seven weapons.

"This doesn’t mean they have them today. There’s a series of sophisticated mechanisms and systems required, which we are currently discussing with them," he noted.

Nikolay Plotnikov, director of the Center for Scientific and Analytical Information at the Russian Academy of Sciences told Iran's state news agency IRNA, “We are ready to serve as a mediator between Iran and the United States if that helps solve problems through dialogue."

As Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, has until now rejected direct talks, the option of mediation is now essential as US President Donald Trump threatens Iran with military action if it does not reach a nuclear deal within two months.

Trump and Russia's President Vladimir Putin have had better relations than most US presidents with Moscow, though the relationship is still complex, making Moscow an unlikely choice of mediator.

A recent letter from Trump to Iran's Supreme Leader was delivered by the United Arab Emirates.

But the academic, from an institution closely associated with the Putin administration, said diplomacy is the only viable path to revive the 2015 nuclear deal.

“There is no evidence Iran is seeking to produce nuclear weapons,” he said, adding that Tehran is under “closer inspection by the IAEA than many other countries.”

In the interview in which he discussed a recently signed strategic partnership agreement between the two governments, he said the two allies remain firm friends in the face of global sanctions.

“With cooperation between Russia and Iran, neither Washington nor Brussels can bring us to our knees,” said the academic known to move among Russia's political and business elite.

Moscow and Tehran have increased their military cooperation in recent years, particularly in Syria, where both backed former President Bashar al-Assad.

Additionally, Russia has deployed Iranian-made drones and and possibly missiles in Ukraine, despite Tehran’s official denials.

The strengthening of ties between Russia and Iran has accelerated in recent years, driven by mutual isolation stemming from Western sanctions – imposed on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine and on Iran for its nuclear program, support for regional armed groups, and human rights abuses – as well as a shared strategic interest in countering US influence in the region.

However, some media outlets and commentators in Iran, who are in favor of resolving differences with the West, have warned about Russia's true intentions in recent months.

Both countries are also seeking ways to circumvent the sanctions, with recent discussions exploring the expansion of trade using national currencies and alternative financial mechanisms.

Plotnikov also pushed back against Western concerns about Iran’s nuclear intentions in spite of UN reports saying Iran has enough uranium for six nuclear weapons.

Asked whether Moscow could distance itself from Tehran under Western pressure, Plotnikov said that Russia’s foreign policy doctrine in fact prioritizes its relationship with Iran.

“I recommend that you carefully study doctrinal documents such as the concept of Russia’s foreign policy and its priorities. Iran is one of the countries whose relations with Russia are being developed as a priority,” he said.

The Yemeni information minister announced that 70 Iran-backed Houthis and members of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) were killed in a US airstrike on Tuesday, claims denied by the IRGC, which called it “false news”.

The IRGC affiliated Tasnim News Agency called the Saturday announcement by Muammar Al-Eryani "psychological warfare”. Al-Eryani is the minister of Yemen's official government, which is at war with the Houthis.

"It seems that this false news has been published in the context of psychological warfare and in order to push the region towards an all-out war, while officials and military commanders of the Islamic Republic of Iran have repeatedly announced that the Yemeni Ansarullah forces are fighting the US and Israel completely independently,” Tasnim wrote.

Al-Eryani said in a press statement that the attack targeted a point that was "used to plan terrorist attacks against commercial ships and tankers in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandab, and the Gulf of Aden” amid the Houthis’ maritime blockade.

"We are not at all concerned about war. We will not be the ones to start a war, but we are fully prepared for any conflict," IRGC Chief Commander Hossein Salami said Saturday.

"We're ready for both psychological operations and military action by the enemy, but we will not retreat a single step."

He said Iran's enemy is spread across the region and is within the Islamic Republic military's reach everywhere.

Israel "is like a spread-out table in front of us. A great power has been amassed. If the enemy wishes to untie our hands so it can witness the reality of our power, we are ready."

Salami likened Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to Prophet Moses, saying he will lead Iranians through the turmoil just as Moses parted the Nile and brought his people safely through it.

He said the Iran-Israel confrontation is a "real war—a battle for survival and a clash between two entities."

"This is the greatest confrontation in the history of Muslims against polytheists, unbelievers, and hypocrites. This front is the most unequal battle in history since Ashura," he said. "The enemy has come with all its might to force the surrender and destruction of dignity, honor, identity, Islam, and [the principle of] leadership—but it cannot succeed."

"Iran seeks dialogue from a position of equality—not a situation in which it is threatened on one hand and asked to negotiate on the other," President Masoud Pezeshkian said Saturday.

"If you want negotiations, then what are the threats for?" he added, referring to Donald Trump's threats to bomb Iran if talks over its disputed nuclear program fail.

"Today, the United States not only humiliates Iran but also the world. This behavior contradicts its call for negotiations," he said.