<\/p>\nListen to this article<\/span>\u00a0|\u00a0<\/span>4 mins<\/span><\/p>\n<\/button>info<\/title><path class=\"icon-main-color\" d=\"M12 0a12 12 0 1 0 0 24 12 12 0 0 0 0-24Zm-.226 3.225a2.039 2.039 0 0 1 2.155 1.924v.193a1.998 1.998 0 0 1-2.155 2.149 2.029 2.029 0 0 1-2.146-2.15 2.039 2.039 0 0 1 1.955-2.122h.193l-.002.006Zm3.227 15.525a.75.75 0 0 1-.752.75H9.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.75h.748V12h-.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.751h3a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.752v6.75h.75a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.749L15 18.75Z\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/div>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>As a new round of talks between the United States and Iran is scheduled to take place in Geneva, Tehran has reiterated that it wants to find a diplomatic solution with the US on its nuclear programme but will defend itself if Washington resorts to military action.<\/p>\n<p>Iran\u2019s Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday that any US attack, including limited strikes, would be considered an \u201cact of aggression\u201d that would precipitate a response after US President Donald Trump said he was considering a limited strike on Iran.<\/p>\n<section class=\"more-on\">\n<h2 class=\"more-on__heading\">Recommended Stories<!-- --> <\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list of 4 items<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p>\u201cAn act of aggression would be regarded as an act of aggression. Period. And any state would react to an act of aggression as part of its inherent right of self-defence ferociously, so that\u2019s what we would do,\u201d Baghaei said during a media briefing.<\/p>\n<p>Trump said on Friday that he was considering a limited strike if Tehran did not reach a deal with the US. \u201cI guess I can say I am considering that,\u201d he said in reply to a question from a reporter.<\/p>\n<p>On Sunday, \u2060Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said nuclear talks with the US have produced \u201cencouraging signals\u201d but warned that Tehran is prepared for any scenario in advance of another round of negotiations set for Thursday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIran is committed to peace and stability in the region,\u201d Pezeshkian wrote on X.<\/p>\n<p>The two countries concluded a second round of indirect talks in Switzerland on Tuesday under Omani mediation against the backdrop of the largest US military build-up in the region since the 2003 Iraq war. They resumed talks in Oman this month.<\/p>\n<p>A third round of indirect talks is scheduled for Thursday in Geneva, but the US has yet to confirm. Oman said on Sunday that the talks are set \u201cwith a positive push to go the extra mile towards finalising the deal\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has been leading the negotiations for Iran while the US is represented by envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump\u2019s son-in-law Jared Kushner.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"iranians-had-never-capitulated\">\u2018Iranians had never capitulated\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>Baghaei dismissed any claim that a temporary agreement had been reached with Washington, adding that speculation on the nuclear talks is not uncommon.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe do not confirm any of the speculation. The details of any negotiation process are discussed in the negotiating room. The speculation raised about an interim agreement has no basis.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Al Jazeera\u2019s Tohid Asadi, reporting from Tehran, said there was a \u201cmixture of optimism and pessimism\u201d in Iran\u2019s capital.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLet\u2019s call it a pragmatically calibrated cautiousness that we see when it comes to Iran\u2019s statements over the past few weeks, specifically following the major military build-up by the Americans in the region,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>He said Iran is considering both scenarios \u201con the basis of readiness for diplomatic engagement on the one hand and regional confrontation on the other hand\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The Trump administration said it has been intensifying its build-up of an array of military assets in the Middle East during the talks with Iran. In an interview with the Fox News TV channel on Sunday, Witkoff said Trump was wondering why Iran has not \u201ccapitulated\u201d in the face of the military deployment.<\/p>\n<p>Baghaei on Monday stressed that Iranians had never capitulated at any point in their history.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is not the first time we have encountered contradictory claims,\u201d the Foreign Ministry spokesman said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe leave the judgement to the discerning people of Iran and the country\u2019s political elites to decide about Iran\u2019s negotiating approach and, in turn, the negotiating approach of the United States,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo negotiation that begins with an imposed burden and prejudgement will naturally reach a result,\u201d the official said.<\/p>\n<p>He also stressed that Iran\u2019s positions on its nuclear programme and sanctions relief are clear-cut.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAny negotiation process requires joint action, and there is hope for results if there is goodwill and seriousness on both sides,\u201d Baghaei said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Remarks from Ministry of Foreign Affairs come after Trump says he is considering an attack if a nuclear deal is not reached. Listen to this article\u00a0|\u00a04 mins info As a new round of talks between the United States and Iran is scheduled to take place in Geneva, Tehran has reiterated that it wants to find […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13182,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13181","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-middle-east-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13181","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13181"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13181\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/13182"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13181"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13181"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13181"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}