Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi Heads to Moscow to Meet Vladimir Putin

Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi left Islamabad for Moscow as mediators tried to keep diplomacy alive in the Iran war, with multiple outlets describing a rapid, multi-capital shuttle that included Oman.

“Iran’s top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, has left Islamabad for Moscow, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, as mediators hope to keep the prospect of more Tehran-Washington talks alive”

Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera said Araghchi “has left Islamabad for Moscow,” after he “sandwiched a trip to Muscat, Oman” between visits to Pakistan, and it reported that there was “no indication that direct talks between Iran and the United States would resume.”

Al Jazeera

The New Arab reported that Araghchi would meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Russia’s “second biggest city,” citing Tehran’s ambassador Kazem Jalali, while Middle East Eye said Russia’s foreign ministry told RIA Novosti: “We confirm a visit by Araghchi to Russia with the aim of holding talks.”

France 24 likewise described Araghchi “on Sunday squeezed in a trip to Oman before returning to Pakistan and then heading to Moscow for talks,” and it said he was set to meet Putin “in Moscow on Monday.”

Anadolu Ajansı reported that Araghchi “has left Pakistan for Moscow, the next stop on his regional diplomatic tour,” citing Iran’s official news agency IRNA.

In the same diplomatic window, Al Jazeera said the ceasefire Washington and Tehran agreed to on April 7 had “largely halted the fighting that began with joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28,” but it stressed that “a permanent settlement remains elusive.”

Before the Moscow leg, Araghchi’s itinerary threaded through Oman and Pakistan as mediators sought to revive Tehran-Washington talks without showing signs of direct US-Iran negotiations restarting.

Al Jazeera said Araghchi “sandwiched a trip to Muscat, Oman, in between visits to the Pakistani capital,” and it added that “there was no indication that direct talks between Iran and the United States would resume.”

DIE WELT

The New Arab similarly described the trip as part of talks over “the Islamic republic's war with the United States and Israel,” and it said Tehran’s ambassador Kazem Jalali wrote on X that Araghchi would meet Putin in Russia’s “second biggest city.”

DIE WELT said negotiations in the Iran war had “stalled” and that Araghchi would travel “from Pakistan to Russia,” while it also included that “Talks in Oman also about secure transit through the Strait of Hormuz.”

Free Malaysia Today connected the same Oman stopover to the stalled talks, stating Araghchi “visited Oman between trips to Pakistani capital Islamabad and is expected in Russia on Monday to meet president Vladimir Putin.”

Multiple outlets also described Iran sending “written messages” to the Americans via Pakistan, with Fars news agency reporting that the messages were about “some of the red lines of the Islamic Republic of Iran, including nuclear issues and the Strait of Hormuz.”

As Araghchi moved between capitals, US President Donald Trump’s public stance shaped the diplomatic atmosphere, with outlets quoting him directly about scrapping envoy travel and offering phone talks instead.

“Negotiations in the Iran war have stalled”

DIE WELT

Al Jazeera said there had been hopes for a new round of talks on Saturday, with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner due to visit Islamabad, but it reported that Trump later told Fox News he had scrapped the trip, saying there was no point “sitting around talking about nothing.”

It then quoted Trump on Sunday: “I said, we’re not doing this any more. We have all the cards. If they want to talk, they can come to us, or they can call us, you know there is a telephone. We have nice, secure lines.”

France 24 echoed the same sequence, saying Trump “scotched a planned trip to Islamabad by his negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner” and quoting him again: “If they want to talk, they can come to us, or they can call us, you know there is a telephone, we have nice secure lines.”

Free Malaysia Today also reported that Trump cancelled the trip and dismissed it as “sitting around talking about nothing,” while adding that Trump told Fox News that if Iran wanted talks, “they can come to us, or they can call us, you know there is a telephone, we have nice secure lines.”

In parallel, Araghchi signaled skepticism about Washington’s intentions, with Free Malaysia Today quoting him saying he had “yet to see if the US is truly serious about diplomacy.”

The diplomatic push unfolded against a backdrop of Strait of Hormuz pressure, with multiple outlets describing Iran restricting movement through the strait and the United States imposing a blockade of Iranian ports.

Al Jazeera said Iran has “effectively blocked the vital Strait of Hormuz, cutting off vast quantities of oil, natural gas and fertiliser from the global market, and sending prices soaring,” and it added that “The US has imposed a blockade of Iranian ports in response.”

France 24

Free Malaysia Today likewise said “Iran has sealed off the strait, cutting flows of oil, gas and fertiliser and sending prices soaring,” and it described “fears of food insecurity in developing countries.”

France 24 framed the same standoff as “a standoff remains at the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global waterway, as Iran restricts movement through it and the US enforces a blockade of Iranian ports.”

DIE WELT’s live ticker included a specific Oman-related thread, stating that “According to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghtschi, the talks in Oman also focus on security in the Strait of Hormuz.”

Free Malaysia Today added that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had “no intention of lifting their blockade,” quoting: “Controlling the Strait of Hormuz and maintaining the shadow of its deterrent effects over America and the White House’s supporters in the region is the definitive strategy of Islamic Iran.”

The Moscow meeting is presented across outlets as a key diplomatic hinge, but the reporting also shows how different actors frame what it could accomplish and what constraints remain.

“Iran’s top diplomat leaves Pakistan for Russia, Trump says Tehran can talk by phone Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday squeezed in a trip to Oman before returning to Pakistan and then heading to Moscow for talks in a frantic diplomatic shuffle as mediators pressed to reignite talks between Tehran and the US”

France 24

The New Arab said Araghchi would meet Putin “as part of a trip that begins on Monday for talks over the Islamic republic's war with the United States and Israel,” and it added that Russia and Iran have “developed an increasingly close relationship in recent years.”

Free Malaysia Today

DIE WELT described the Kremlin’s position more cautiously, saying Russia is “not willing to militarily support the partner in the current conflict with the United States” and that “Primarily, Tehran receives diplomatic backing from the Kremlin.”

Middle East Eye and Anadolu Ajansı both focused on the confirmation of talks, with Middle East Eye quoting Russia’s foreign ministry: “We confirm a visit by Araghchi to Russia with the aim of holding talks,” and Anadolu Ajansı reporting that Araghchi is “expected to hold talks with senior Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin.”

Beyond the diplomatic track, Al Jazeera and Free Malaysia Today linked the stakes to the ceasefire and the blockade, with Al Jazeera saying “a permanent settlement remains elusive” and Free Malaysia Today warning that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards had “no intention of lifting their blockade.”

In parallel, DIE WELT’s live ticker added operational detail about the US intercepting an Iranian “shadow fleet” ship, stating the US military “intercepted a freighter of the Iranian 'shadow fleet'” and that the ship “is being escorted back toward Iran.”