Iranupdated 1h ago2 min read
Abbas Araghchi Says Iran Will Defend Itself as Wojciech Zajaczkowski Visits Tehran
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Iran will use diplomacy while maintaining defensive capabilities to safeguard regional peace. Iran will defend itself and not retreat from defense in the face of threats.
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Diplomacy, then defense
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in Tehran on Wednesday that diplomacy would not preclude the Islamic Republic from defending itself against threats or aggression. Araghchi told reporters that Iran “would likewise not hesitate to defend its national sovereignty and territorial integrity by all means against any threat or act of aggression,” during a meeting with Poland’s visiting Deputy Foreign Minister Wojciech Zajaczkowski.
Masoud Pezeshkian said on Wednesday that the US could not expect dialogue with Iran while issuing threats, adding, “You cannot block all the roads and threaten and at the same time want to talk.” Pezeshkian accused the US of “reneging” on its commitments and said, “I believe that one should not enter into a pact lightly, but once a pact is made, one must remain committed to it until the end – even if it proves disadvantageous.”
Talks via mediators
Abbas Araghchi said negotiations with the United States were continuing without interruption through mediators, including Pakistan and Qatar, IRNA reported on Wednesday.
IRNA’s post on X quoted Iranian media saying, “Speaking to Iraqi media, FM Araghchi stated that negotiations with the United States, conducted via mediators such as Pakistan and Qatar, remain ongoing without interruption.”
Mehr News Agency reported that Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told reporters, “We insist on nothing but safeguarding Iran’s national interests. Our concern is Iran—whether through diplomacy or through defense.”
Baghaei said diplomacy was part of defense, stating, “diplomacy is a part of defense and one should not separate the battle field from the diplomacy field.”
Strait of Hormuz stakes
Iranian officials tied diplomacy to the Strait of Hormuz, with the Mashriq TV account saying Tehran effectively closed the strait after the US and Israel launched a war against Iran on February 28. Mashriq TV also said Washington later imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports, and it described a June memorandum of understanding on freedom of navigation that stalled over disagreements related to security in the strategic waterway.
Noor News Agency said Araghchi wrote in the Financial Times about a “Seven-Week Plan” to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume talks, while warning that persisting in the “illusion of Iran’s army and people’s vulnerability” would yield “hundreds of billions of dollars in damages” on the American people. Mehr News Agency reported Baghaei’s warning that “any attack on Iran will not go unanswered,” while he said technical issues were being resolved and Iran’s exports to Pakistan continued after the closure of the Iran-Pakistan border.