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In brief
- Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said that talks with the United States are not on the agenda.
- Araghchi said that Iran is prepared to continue missile strikes for “as long as it takes”.
Iran’s foreign minister announced that discussions with the United States are currently not a consideration, as the conflict extends into its eleventh day.
“Engaging in dialogue with the Americans is no longer on our agenda,” stated Abbas Araghchi in an interview with PBS News. He explained that Iran’s previous negotiations with the US left them with a “very bitter experience.”
The conflict escalated on February 28 when the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran, resulting in the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. This attack ignited a broader war that has since engulfed the Middle East.
The strikes by Israel and the US occurred just two days before planned talks between Washington and Tehran, which had followed three prior negotiation rounds. Omani mediators involved had indicated that “significant progress” was being made in these discussions.
In retaliation for the US-Israeli offensive, Iran has launched drone and missile attacks targeting Israeli and American interests throughout the region.
Shipping traffic through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, through which nearly 20 per cent of the world’s crude oil usually transits, has been severely disrupted.
Iranian forces have repeatedly targeted oil tankers passing through the strategic waterway since the war began.
In the interview with PBS News, Araghchi insisted that Iran was acting in “self-defence”.
“We are prepared, we have been prepared to continue attacking them with our missiles as long as needed and as long as it takes,” he said.
Late on Monday, Iranian deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi said some countries in the region and elsewhere had reached out to Iran to push for a ceasefire.
“China, Russia and France, and even some countries in the region, are in contact with us,” he told state TV.
“Some of them are willing to do something to stop this war or establish a ceasefire.”
French President Emmanuel Macron said France and its allies are preparing a “defensive” mission to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Gharibabadi said Iran “did not start the aggression and the war… we are defending ourselves”.
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