No nuclear talks under pressure, Iran FM says

TEHERAN — Iran's refusal to negotiate over its nuclear program under extreme pressure and its recent military exercises, while engaging in diplomacy, indicate the country's determined and diverse approaches to safeguarding its national interests.

The country will not yield to external pressure or sanctions, emphasized Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in a Tuesday meeting with his visiting Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Teheran.

"Negotiations under pressure, threats and sanctions are meaningless," Xinhua quoted Araghchi as saying.

At a joint news conference after their meeting, Araghchi said Iran will not agree to hold negotiations on its nuclear program as long as the "maximum pressure" campaign of the United States continues against Iran.

Iran has engaged in "close consultations" with Moscow on reviving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, he said. The US unilaterally withdrew from the JCPOA signed in 2015 by Iran and world powers, claiming it failed to curtail Iran's missile program and regional influence.

Teheran is determined to strengthen interactions with Moscow, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said when meeting with Lavrov on Tuesday evening, according to MEHR.

"Iran and Russia have similar views on regional issues and are pursuing the strengthening of their regional and international cooperation within the framework of their own interactions and within the framework of regional and international organizations such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Eurasian Economic Union, and BRICS," Pezeshkian said.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei on Wednesday condemned fresh US sanctions targeting vessels, individuals, and entities allegedly involved in Iran's crude oil trade.

Iran has been conducting military exercises recently. During an exercise on Tuesday, the Iranian Air Force successfully deployed advanced drone models Mohajer-6 and Kaman-12 to execute a range of complex missions, MEHR reported.

'Decisive' response

Any Israeli threat against Iran's interests will receive a "decisive "response from Iranian armed forces, Gholam-Ali Rashid, commander of Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, warned on Monday in southeastern Iran's Sistan and Baluchestan Province. He was reacting to recent threats issued to Teheran by Israeli officials, including against Iran's nuclear facilities.

Rashid added that Israel has been making miscalculations about Iran due to its lack of knowledge about the country and has been trying to deceive the US, Europe and West Asia by running an "incorrect" narrative about Iran's power over the last four months.

Addressing the 17th Cultural Festival of Ali Akbar at the Summit Hall of the Ministry of Defense in Teheran on Tuesday, Aziz Nasirzadeh, minister of defense, said that Iran is ready to give a strong and decisive response to any threat or mistake committed by the enemy, IRNA reported.

Mike Gu in Hong Kong contributed to this story.

Agencies - Xinhua