President Masoud Pezeshkian has said Iran is ready to negotiate with the US after requests from “friendly governments in the region” to respond to a proposal for talks.
In a statement on X, Pezeshkian said he had told Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to pursue talks “provided that a suitable environment exists – one free from threats and unreasonable expectations”.
His words come after the country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned any attack on Iran would spark a “regional war”.
US President Donald Trump has built up forces in the region and threatened to take military action if Iran does not agree a deal on its nuclear programme and stop killing protesters.
Pezeshkian said Iran would pursue “fair and equitable negotiations” with the US, adding that they should be “conducted within the framework of our national interests”.
The talks may be held in Istanbul on Friday, with Araghchi due to meet US special envoy Steve Witkoff, according to US media reports.
The foreign ministers of Egypt, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have also been invited to participate.
Pezeshkian’s announcement came a day after Araghchi told CNN in an interview that he was “confident that we can achieve a deal” to “ensure that there is no nuclear weapons”.
Iran insists its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful and denies that it is seeking to develop nuclear weapons.
When asked about the prospect of a deal by reporters, Trump said: “If we can work something out, that would be great, and if we can’t, probably bad things would happen.”
He said a “tremendous force” was headed to Iran, including the “biggest and the best” ships.
The US military build-up in the region includes the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, which has an air wing of around 70 aircraft, and three destroyers equipped with Tomahawk cruise missiles.
In an address on Sunday, Khamenei told Iranians: “We are not the initiators and do not want to attack any country, but the Iranian nation will strike a strong blow against anyone who attacks and harasses them.”
