Yahoo News – Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has ordered the start of nuclear talks with the United States, local media said, as his counterpart Donald Trump threatened “bad things” if no deal with the Islamic republic was struck.
Following the Iranian authorities’ deadly response to anti-government protests that peaked last month, the US president has threatened military action and ordered the dispatch of an aircraft carrier group to the Middle East.
Trump has maintained he is hopeful that Washington will “work something out” with Iran but also warned on Monday that “bad things would happen” if no deal is reached.
“President Pezeshkian has ordered the opening of talks with the United States” on Iran’s nuclear programme, the Fars news agency reported on Monday, citing an unnamed government source. The report was also carried by the government newspaper Iran and the reformist daily Shargh.
A meeting is likely to take place in Turkey on Friday, following interventions by Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and Oman, an Arab official told AFP on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter.
US news site Axios cited two unnamed sources as saying Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was expected to meet with US envoy Steve Witkoff in Istanbul to discuss a possible deal on the nuclear issue.
In an interview with CNN on Sunday, Araghchi said: “President Trump said no nuclear weapons, and we fully agree. We fully agree with that. That could be a very good deal,” adding that, “in return, we expect sanctions lifting”.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said earlier on Monday that Tehran was working on a method and framework for negotiations that would be ready in the coming days, with messages between the two sides relayed through regional players.
– ‘Police the world’ –
Jordan’s top diplomat, Ayman Safadi, assured Araghchi on Monday that the kingdom would “not be a battleground in any regional conflict or a launching pad for any military action against Iran”.
Iranian authorities, including supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, have warned any US attack would trigger a “regional war”.
In Tehran, pensioner Ali Hamidi told AFP he was a veteran and “not afraid of war”, but that “America should mind its own business, why does it want to police the world?”
The protests were sparked in late December by economic strain and exploded in size and intensity over several days in early January.
Authorities have said the protests were “riots” inflamed by its arch-foes the United States and Israel, with Khamenei likening them to a “coup” attempt.
– Ambassadors summoned –
Tehran has acknowledged thousands of deaths during the protests, and on Sunday the presidency published the names of 2,986 people out of the 3,117 whom authorities said were killed in the unrest.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency, a US-based NGO, said it has confirmed 6,854 deaths, mostly protesters killed by security forces, with other rights groups warning the figure is likely far higher.
Young Iranian Selina, who would not give her full name, travelled to Iraqi Kurdistan seeking some relief from “living in fear”.
“It’s not safe for us” in Iran, the 25-year-old told AFP.
“We don’t even dare to go out after 6:00 pm because soldiers are everywhere.”
The EU also issued fresh sanctions on Iranian officials, including the interior minister, a move echoed on Monday by Britain, which announced sanctions on 10 individuals over the “brutality against protesters”.
Baqaei said Monday the foreign ministry had summoned all the EU member state ambassadors in Tehran over the designation, and that other responses were to come.
Iranian state television also announced four foreigners had been arrested in Tehran for “participation in riots”, without specifying their nationalities.
Authorities have continued to announce arrests, with rights groups estimating at least 40,000 people have been detained over the protests.