Iran Rejects Trump’s Proposal for Direct Nuclear Talks
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghti, has rejected the US President’s proposal for direct talks on the Iranian nuclear program, calling them “meaningless” as the US “constantly threatens violence”.
Iran has thus defied the US threats of either direct talks on its nuclear program or being bombed. Tehran has also warned neighboring countries hosting US military bases that they could be drawn into the conflict and potentially come under fire if they get involved. This was stated by a high-ranking Iranian official to the Reuters news agency.
Iran has informed Iraq, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Turkey and Bahrain that any support for a US attack on Iran, including the use of their airspace or territory by the US military during an attack, would be considered a hostile act.
Such an act “will have severe consequences for them”, the official said, adding that the Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has put the Iranian military on high alert.
The concern of a larger regional conflict has unsettled the countries around the Gulf, which borders Iran on one side and the US-allied Arab monarchies on the other and plays a significant part in the global oil supply.
A high-ranking Iranian military commander of the Revolutionary Guards, Amirali Hajizadeh, had hinted on Monday that US military bases in the region could be targeted in any possible conflict.
In 2020, Iran had targeted US military bases in Iraq after the killing of Qassem Soleimani, the head of the Quds Force of the IRGC, in a US drone strike in Baghdad.
Although Iran has rejected the US demand for direct talks, it still intends to continue indirect talks through Oman, a long-standing communication channel between the rival states.
Iranian state media reported on Wednesday that Kuwait had assured Iran that it would not accept any aggressive measures targeting other countries from its soil. Iran’s ally, Russia, stated on Thursday that the US threats of military strikes against the Islamic Republic were unacceptable and called for restraint on Friday.