Iran Signals Readiness for Nuclear Deal as Tensions Mount Ahead of Geneva Talks

BY EMMANUEL OGBONNA

Iran’s foreign minister met Monday with the head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog in Geneva, positioning Tehran for a second round of negotiations with the United States over its nuclear program as military tensions simmer across the Middle East.

Abbas Araghchi held talks with Rafael Grossi, director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, in what appeared to be a calculated effort to signal diplomatic engagement just hours before indirect discussions with Washington resume. Araghchi is also scheduled to meet Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, whose country is facilitating the talks between Tehran and Washington.

Writing on social media, Araghchi said he had arrived in Geneva with “real ideas” aimed at achieving what he described as a fair and equitable agreement. At the same time, he drew a red line, insisting that “submission before threats” would not be considered.

The diplomatic outreach unfolded against a backdrop of heightened military maneuvering. Iranian state television reported that the country launched a new round of naval drills early Monday in strategic waterways, including the Strait of Hormuz, the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. The exercises are intended to test intelligence-gathering and operational readiness in corridors that are critical to global energy supplies, with roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil shipments passing through the narrow Strait of Hormuz.

The drills, carried out by Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, mark the second such operation in recent weeks. According to maritime security firm EOS Risk Group, commercial vessels transiting the region received radio warnings that a live-fire exercise could affect the northern shipping lane of the strait, which lies within Iranian territorial waters. Iranian state media did not explicitly confirm the live-fire component.

The timing of the maneuvers has drawn attention as Washington continues to reinforce its military presence in the region. In late January, a previous Iranian exercise prompted a sharp response from U.S. Central Command, which warned Tehran against interfering with American naval vessels or commercial shipping while acknowledging Iran’s right to operate in international waters and airspace.

Tensions between the two militaries escalated further earlier this month when a U.S. Navy fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone that was approaching the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea. The U.S. military also reported that Iranian forces harassed a U.S.-flagged, U.S.-crewed merchant vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

Despite the military brinkmanship, Iranian officials have indicated a willingness to negotiate if sanctions relief is on the table. Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi said over the weekend that Tehran is prepared to discuss limitations on its nuclear program provided Washington demonstrates sincerity and addresses punitive economic measures.

“The ball is in America’s court,” Takht-Ravanchi said in an interview with the BBC, adding that tangible steps by the United States could put both sides “on a road to have an agreement.”

Oman hosted an initial round of indirect talks on Feb. 6, reviving diplomatic channels that had been dormant since negotiations collapsed last year amid escalating hostilities between Iran and Israel. That confrontation, which lasted 12 days, included U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities and led Tehran to suspend broad cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Monday’s meeting between Araghchi and Grossi is therefore significant. Since the conflict, the IAEA has struggled to verify the status of Iran’s stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels. Although inspectors have been granted access to some facilities that were not damaged during the fighting, access to other sites remains restricted.

Grossi has previously warned that Iran’s inventory of uranium enriched up to 60% purity — a short technical step from weapons-grade — could theoretically provide material for multiple nuclear devices if Tehran chose to weaponize its program. He has emphasized, however, that such capability does not equate to the existence of an actual bomb.

The United States maintains that any renewed agreement must prohibit uranium enrichment altogether, a demand Iran has repeatedly rejected. Tehran insists its nuclear activities are solely for peaceful purposes, though some Iranian officials have in recent months hinted at the possibility of pursuing a nuclear weapon if confronted militarily.

President Donald Trump has combined diplomatic overtures with a visible show of force. After initially threatening military action in response to Iran’s crackdown on nationwide protests last month, Trump shifted toward a renewed pressure campaign aimed at extracting concessions in nuclear talks.

On Friday, Trump announced that the USS Gerald R. Ford — the world’s largest aircraft carrier — would be redeployed from the Caribbean to the Middle East to join other U.S. naval assets already operating there. He also suggested that political change in Tehran “would be the best thing that could happen,” a remark likely to further inflame Iranian suspicions.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking in Budapest on Monday, said Washington continues to prefer a negotiated settlement. “The president always prefers peaceful outcomes and negotiated outcomes,” Rubio said, declining to prejudge the upcoming discussions.

Iran has warned that any U.S. military strike would be met with retaliation.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traveled to Washington last week to press for a broader framework in any potential deal. Netanyahu has argued that restrictions must also address Iran’s ballistic missile program and its support for regional proxy groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah, issues that Tehran has traditionally treated as non-negotiable.

As diplomats gather in Geneva, the stakes are high. The talks represent one of the few remaining avenues to prevent further escalation in a region already strained by conflict, economic pressure and competing military deployments. Whether the renewed engagement can overcome years of mistrust and shifting red lines remains uncertain, but both sides appear determined — at least for now — to test the possibility of a negotiated path forward.