Netanyahu says all Iranian nuclear facilities must be blown up

Iran’s foreign minister has questioned whether US President Donald Trump would risk igniting a regional war with Iran, days before talks between the two sides are due to take place in Oman.

Recent exchanges between Tehran and Washington were “a genuine attempt to clarify positions,” and not merely symbolic, said Abbas Araghchi in an opinion piece published Tuesday in The Washington Post.

“It is hard to imagine President Trump wanting to become another US president mired in a catastrophic war in the Middle East — a conflict that would quickly extend across the region and cost exponentially more than the trillions of taxpayer dollars that his predecessors burned in Afghanistan and Iraq,” Araghchi wrote.

He confirmed that Iran remains open to indirect negotiations and said that a diplomatic path is still possible. “Our proposal for indirect negotiations remains on the table. We believe that if there is true will, there is always a way forward,” he added.

The talks, scheduled for Saturday in Oman, come amid lingering distrust between the two sides and competing expectations over what a potential agreement might require.

"Trump threatened to strike Iran, but he aligns more with the dovish camp that favors a diplomatic solution," Axios reported on Tuesday.

"Witkoff and VP Vance also believe a deal with Iran is possible and preferable," the report said citing a source familiar with their thinking.

Witkoff will lead the US delegation in the upcoming nuclear talks with Iran, slated to be held in Oman on Saturday.

Iran’s Quds Force is managing the operation through its Unit 190 and Unit 700, according to the unidentified source. Shipments are arriving either directly to Lebanon or through intermediary countries.

Intelli Times also reported the same information about Quds Force involvement, citing the same two units.

“Hezbollah has refocused and reimposed its control over the port of Beirut,” the source said, referring to the facility’s gradual return to normal operations following the August 2020 explosion.

The Iran-backed group turned to sea routes after losing access to overland supply lines through Syria following the fall of former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and after Lebanese authorities curtailed its influence at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport following a US-French brokered ceasefire with Israel in November.

The source said Hezbollah operates freely at the port through a network inside customs and port oversight bodies, directed by senior Hezbollah official Wafiq Safa.

“Safa is seeking, through his agents at the port, to facilitate the smuggling of equipment, weapons and money without any inspection or oversight,” the source said.

The source warned that the use of Beirut Port by Hezbollah - designated a terrorist group by countries such as the UK and US - risks Lebanon’s economic interests and may deter foreign investment.

“The Lebanese state must act urgently in light of Hezbollah’s violations and plans, which could repeat the August 2020 catastrophe,” the source said.

Speaking in a separate interview with LBCI aired Sunday, US Deputy Special Envoy for the Middle East Morgan Ortagus said Hezbollah and all militias in Lebanon must be disarmed “as soon as possible.”

“We, of course, always bring up disarming Hezbollah, but not just Hezbollah, all militias in this country,” Ortagus said.

“Only by disarming militant groups could the Lebanese people be ‘free from foreign influence, free from terrorism, free from the fears that have been so pervasive in society.’”

Ortagus added that President Joseph Aoun had made it clear in his inaugural speech that “he wanted the state to have the monopoly of force, he wanted the state to be the one with the weapons. That is a position that we support.”

China called on the United States Tuesday to demonstrate sincerity in the upcoming nuclear talks with Iran.

"As the country that unilaterally withdrew from the comprehensive agreement on the Iran nuclear issue and caused the current situation, the US should demonstrate political sincerity (and)... mutual respect," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said Tuesday.

Washington should "participate in dialogue and consultation, and at the same time stop its wrong practice of using force to exert extreme pressure," Lin added."China will continue to maintain communication with all relevant parties, actively promote peace and dialogue and push for a diplomatic solution at an early date.”

Iranian officials conveyed to Reuters on Tuesday a palpable wariness and deep-seated suspicion regarding Washington's intentions, tempering expectations for significant progress in the upcoming talks with the US.

In Tehran, US President Donald Trump's warnings are seen as a way to box the Islamic Republic into accepting concessions in the talks Trump demands or face air strikes, Reuters quoted three Iranian officials as saying.

The officials added that Washington wanted to push other issues too, including Iranian influence across the Middle East and its ballistic missiles program, which they said were off the table.

"Trump wants a new deal: end Iran's regional influence, dismantle its nuclear program, and halt its missile work. These are unacceptable to Tehran. Our nuclear program cannot be dismantled," one of the officialssaid.

"Our defense is non-negotiable. How can Tehran disarm when Israel has nuclear warheads? Who protects us if Israel or others strike?" Reuters quoted another Iranian official as saying.