Negotiations between Iran and U.S. have stalled as the U.S. imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports, while Iran has kept the key Strait of Hormuz largely closed.
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Oil tanker HELGA is moored at one of Iraq’s southern offshore oil terminals near Basra as it prepares to load crude oil, becoming the second vessel to arrive since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz on April 24, 2026.
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U.S. President Donald Trump addresses a press conference after the shooting incident at White House Correspondents’ Dinner, in Washington, D.C., on Saturday.
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U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, center, shakes hands with Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshall Asim Munir, left, as Charge d’Affaires of the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad Natalie A. Baker, second left, and Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, right look on, after arriving for talks with Iranian officials in Islamabad, Pakistan, Saturday, April 11, 2026. File
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U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance speaks during a news conference after meeting with representatives from Pakistan and Iran, on April 12, 2026, in Islamabad, Pakistan.
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A screen displays U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, who was leading a U.S. delegation participating in peace talks with Iran, addressing a press briefing in Islamabad, Pakistan on April 12, 2026
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U.S. Vice President JD Vance waves as he boards Air Force Two, after peace talks with Iran in Islamabad, Pakistan, on April 12, 2026.
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U.S. President Donald Trump said that Iran was doing a “very poor job” of allowing oil through the waterway. File
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Iran’s top diplomat said Sunday (February 22, 2026) that his country would strike back at U.S. interests in West Asia in the event of an attack, though he still saw a chance for a diplomatic resolution.

Speaking to U.S. broadcaster CBS, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he expected new talks on the details of a deal, “probably” Thursday, as fears loomed of renewed conflict after Washington carried out a major redeployment of military assets to the region.

U.S. threats of military action have multiplied since a nationwide protest movement sparked a major crackdown that rights groups say killed thousands of people.

On Sunday, Iranian students held competing pro- and anti-government protests at several universities, with critics of the clerical leadership risking arrest or worse if they are caught.

“If the U.S. attacks us, then we have every right to defend ourselves,” Mr. Araghchi said, alluding to American interests in the region as potential targets.

Still, he said, “there is a good chance to have a diplomatic solution”.

After a recent round of talks in Geneva, Iran said it was preparing a draft proposal for an agreement that would avert military action.

“I believe that when we meet, probably this Thursday in Geneva again, we can work on those elements and prepare a good text and come to a fast deal,” Mr. Araghchi told CBS.

Axios had earlier reported, citing an unnamed senior U.S. official, that if Iran submitted its proposal in the next 48 hours, Washington was ready to meet again later in the week “to start detailed negotiations”.

The U.S. has sent two aircraft carriers to the West Asia in recent weeks, along with other jets and ships, and has also shored up its air defences in the region to back up its threats of military intervention.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s chief West Asia negotiator Steve Witkoff said Saturday (February 21) in a Fox News interview that the President was questioning why Iran had not yet given in to U.S. pressure.

“He’s curious as to why they haven’t… I don’t want to use the word ‘capitulated’, but why they haven’t capitulated,” he said.

“Why, under this pressure, with the amount of seapower and naval power over there, why haven’t they come to us and said, ‘We profess we don’t want a weapon, so here’s what we’re prepared to do’?”

Western governments fear Iran’s nuclear programme is aimed at developing a bomb, which Tehran has long denied, though it insists on its right to enrich uranium for civilian purposes.

On the subject of enrichment, Mr. Araghchi said on Sunday (February 22), “As a sovereign country, we have every right to decide for ourselves, by ourselves.”

Fears of war

A previous round of diplomacy last year was interrupted by Israel’s bombing campaign against the Islamic republic. That sparked a 12-day conflict in June that the US briefly joined with strikes on nuclear facilities.

Despite the recent Oman-mediated talks, Iranians’ fears of a new conflict have grown.

“I don’t sleep well at night even while taking pills,” Tehran resident Hamid told AFP, saying he worried for his “family’s health… my kids and grandchildren”.

IT technician Mina Ahmadvand, 46, believes that “at this stage, war between Iran and the US as well as Israel is inevitable and I’ve prepared myself for that eventuality”.

“I don’t want war to happen, but one should not fool around with the realities on the ground.”

The concerns have prompted several foreign countries to urge their citizens to leave Iran, including Sweden, Serbia, Poland and Australia, which warned “commercial flights are currently available but this could change quickly”.

Protests

Iran has previously said that quickly striking a deal is in its interests if means relief from sanctions that have hamstrung its economy, which contributed to protests late last year over the high cost of living.

Those demonstrations quickly expanded into mass anti-government protests that marked one of the largest challenges to the Islamic republic’s leadership in years, prompting a deadly crackdown by authorities that saw thousands killed, according to rights groups.

On Sunday, Iranian students gathered for fresh pro- and anti-government rallies commemorating those killed following similar gatherings the day before.

Local and diaspora media outlets reported demonstrations at multiple Tehran universities, with some participants waving the flag of Iran’s deposed monarchy, and others chanting “death to the shah”, who was toppled by the 1979 Islamic revolution.

Trump had initially cheered on the protesters, threatening to intervene on their behalf amid the crackdown, but his threats soon shifted to Iran’s nuclear programme.

Published – February 23, 2026 02:00 am IST

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi
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