Iran criticises Arab League support for UAE claim on Persian Gulf islands

President Donald Trump’s envoy to the Middle East on Sunday said Washington will not accept any level of uranium enrichment in a potential agreement with Tehran.

“We cannot allow even one percent of an enrichment capability,” he told ABC News.

“Everything begins from our standpoint with a deal that does not include enrichment.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi swiftly rejected Witkoff’s remarks, calling them unrealistic and disconnected from the state of negotiations. “I think he is completely at a distance from the reality of the negotiations,” Araghchi told IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News Agency.

In a post on X, Araghchi stressed that uranium enrichment in Iran will not be halted under any scenario.

“If the US is interested in ensuring that Iran will not have nuclear weapons, a deal is within reach, and we are ready for a serious conversation to achieve a solution that will forever ensure that outcome,” Araghchi posted on X. “Enrichment in Iran, however, will continue with or without a deal.”

He also accused the United States of inconsistency in its messaging. “Iran can only control what we Iranians do, and that is to avoid negotiating in public—particularly given the current dissonance we are seeing between what our US interlocutors say in public and in private, and from one week to the other."

Next round of US-Iran talks

Araghchi on Sunday said that a date for the next round of talks has been set and will be announced soon by Oman, which is acting as a mediator, but denied that Tehran had received any formal written proposal from the US.

Witkoff, for his part, said the US had already conveyed its position at the highest level. “(Trump) has directly sent letters to the supreme leader. I have been dispatched to deliver that message as well, and I've delivered it,” he said.

Witkoff said that the next round of negotiations may take place in Europe in the coming days.

“We think that we will be meeting sometime this week in Europe. And we hope that it will lead to some real positivity,” he said.

Iran and the United States have already held four rounds of talks in Muscat and Rome.

Trump said Thursday that the US was “very close” to securing a deal with Iran but warned on Friday that Tehran must act quickly. “They have a proposal. More importantly, they know they have to move quickly or something bad—something bad’s going to happen,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One.

The Istanbul meeting, held at Iran’s consulate and attended by political directors from the UK, France, and Germany, saw the Europeans propose language that would give them standing power to reimpose UN sanctions, irrespective of US participation in any agreement.

According to the report published on Sunday, the European side demanded the right to activate sanctions unilaterally under a "snapback-plus" cause in any deal reached between Iran and the US.

The Iranian delegation firmly rejected the proposal, Farhikhtegan wrote, warning that any such move could provoke Tehran to reconsider its membership in the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

One unnamed Iranian official was quoted as saying: “Iran has no objection to Europe’s presence in negotiations, but this cannot mean granting them enforcement privileges that exceed the original terms.”

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was asked on Sunday if the Istanbul talks signaled a renewed European willingness to engage. He replied, "The issue is that the Europeans have always had such a will, but their capabilities are limited."

"At the moment, the Europeans are not involved in our talks with the Americans, which is not something we welcome. It seems they haven't reached an internal consensus on this issue," he told IRNA on the sidelines of the Tehran Dialogue Forum.

"We will continue our talks with Europe and believe that the more mutual understanding exists between us, the better. We want Europe to play its role, though they themselves have diminished that role."

Snapback mechanism

The Farhikhtegan report said that European envoys threatened to trigger the so-called snapback mechanism and raised the prospect of broader sanctions should their demands be sidelined—remarks that further escalated tensions during the Istanbul meeting.

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi confirmed on Sunday that the snapback issue was raised in recent discussions with the Europeans.

“The Europeans are aware of our position on this matter,” he said. “If any misuse occurs in this regard, we will not remain passive and will take measures within the framework of the NPT.”

The snapback mechanism is a provision within the 2015 Iran nuclear deal (JCPOA) that allows for the reimposition of UN sanctions on Iran if it is found to be in “significant non-performance” of its commitments. This process is outlined in UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorsed the JCPOA.

Under the mechanism, any JCPOA participant—France, Britain, Germany, Russia, China, and arguably the US—can file a complaint to the UN Security Council. If the Council does not pass a resolution to continue sanctions relief within 30 days, all previously lifted UN sanctions are automatically reinstated.

Crucially, this reimposition cannot be blocked by a veto from any permanent member of the Security Council. Although the US withdrew from the JCPOA in 2018, it could still influence other participants to trigger snapback.

The flight, operated by Flynas, arrived at Imam Khomeini International Airport on May 18 as part of the 2025 Hajj operations.

This service is part of an agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia to facilitate the transportation of Iranian pilgrims to this year’s Hajj pilgrimage.

Under the terms of the agreement, Flynas is responsible for flights from Mashhad and part of the routes from Tehran, while Iran Air will handle the remaining routes.

Flynas is expected to operate 224 round-trip flights by July 1, transporting approximately 37,000 Iranian pilgrims, according to Iranian media.

In January 2024, flights to Saudi Arabia for Iranian pilgrims traveling for Umrah were canceled due to "technical disagreements" between the two countries. However, in April, Saudi Arabia reinstated the pilgrimage flights, allowing 90,000 Iranians to participate in the 2024 Hajj.

Tehran and Riyadh reached an agreement in February 2023 to resume diplomatic relations after a seven-year diplomatic hiatus. The agreement, mediated by China during the visit of then Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Shamkhani to Beijing, paved the way for a subsequent trip by Ebrahim Raisi, then President of the Islamic Republic, to Saudi Arabia.

The Aras or Araz-2025 drill, named after the border river Aras, is being held in areas reclaimed from Armenia by Azerbaijan during its 2020 military operation and will continue through May 21, according to officials from both countries.

Iran’s delegation, including senior commanders from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Ground Forces, crossed into Azerbaijan via the Bileh Savar border in Iran’s Ardabil province.

Brigadier General Vali Madani, IRGC’s deputy ground forces operations commander and the joint drill’s lead officer, said the exercise aims to bolster border security and enhance coordination in response to potential regional threats.

The drill comes amid ongoing peace efforts between Azerbaijan and Armenia following decades of conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh. Iran, which shares borders with both countries, has voiced support for a permanent peace agreement.

Iranian officials say such cooperation contributes to regional stability. "This exercise is a significant step toward strengthening mutual trust and security along shared borders," Madani said.

A previous joint exercise between Iranian and Azerbaijani special forces took place in December 2023 in Iran’s Ardabil province.

Tehran has expressed support for the peace deal framework agreed in March between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which includes Armenia’s recognition of Azerbaijani sovereignty over Karabakh.

Iran has also positioned itself as a mediator and supporter of post-conflict reconstruction and regional development.

However, the relationship between the two sides has undergone friction in recent years, including Tehran's anger at Baku's opening an embassy in Tel Aviv two years ago, and more recently, regarding the two nations' growing economic and military ties.

Earlier this year, Kamal Kharrazi, chairman of Iran’s Strategic Council on Foreign Relations and a top adviser to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, warned Azerbaijan about its growing ties with Israel.

“Countries should take their neighbors’ sensitivities into consideration,” Kharrazi told Hikmet Hajiyev, assistant to the president of Azerbaijan for foreign policy affairs, in a January meeting in Tehran.

Only in December, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev had condemned comments by Hassan Ameli, the Friday Prayer leader of Ardabil, who accused Baku of collaborating with Israel.

The three were convicted of “corruption on earth” and “assisting in armed rebellion,” charges that carry the death penalty under Iran’s Islamic law.

The judiciary described them as key coordinators in the planning and logistics of the attacks, which killed a total of 15 people, according to official figures.

Five others received prison terms ranging from five to 25 years. Two were identified as members of the Islamic State militant group, also known as Daesh.

The shrine, a prominent religious and tourist site, was targeted twice in less than a year. Iranian authorities previously executed two people connected to the first attack in October 2022.

In the second attack in August 2023, the main perpetrator was identified as Rahmatullah Nowruzov, a Tajik national. Authorities arrested multiple foreign nationals in connection with that incident.

Iranian officials have attributed the attacks to extremist groups.