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Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi declared Tuesday that a landmark agreement with the United States to avert military conflict was close at hand, issuing his appeal just two days before negotiators from both sides are set to reconvene in Geneva for a third round of talks.
"We have a historic opportunity to strike an unprecedented agreement that addresses mutual concerns and achieves mutual interests," Araghchi said in a social media post, adding that a deal was "within reach, but only if diplomacy is given priority."
The statement comes amid an intensifying US military buildup in the Middle East and persistent threats from President Donald Trump of a strike on Iran should negotiations fail, setting the stage for high-stakes diplomacy on Thursday.
Araghchi vowed that Iran will "under no circumstances ever develop a nuclear weapon," while insisting on the country's right to "harness dividends of peaceful nuclear technology." He also struck a defiant tone on sovereignty, saying Iran has "proven that we will stop at nothing to guard our sovereignty with courage."
The diplomatic maneuvering follows five rounds of nuclear talks held last year, which collapsed after Israel's unprecedented attack on Iran triggered a 12-day war. Talks resumed earlier this month, with Thursday's session marking the third round in the current cycle.
Iran's foreign ministry warned Monday that any strike, even a limited one, "would be regarded as an act of aggression," reiterating Tehran's pledge to respond firmly to any military action.
As diplomacy grinds forward abroad, Iran's leadership faces a renewed domestic challenge. University students in Tehran launched a new semester with campus gatherings reviving slogans from nationwide protests against the country's clerical establishment.
On Tuesday, the fourth consecutive day of campus unrest, videos verified by AFP showed two groups facing off in a large hall at a Tehran university before scuffles broke out. The previous day, students had burned the flag adopted by Iran's Islamic republic after the 1979 revolution, according to verified footage.
Government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani, delivering the first official response to the rallies, acknowledged students' right to protest but warned they must "understand the red lines." The flag, she said, was one "of these red lines that we must protect and not cross or deviate from, even at the height of anger."
The campus demonstrations echo a broader wave of protests that began in December, initially sparked by economic hardship in the sanctions-battered country. Those demonstrations rapidly escalated into nationwide unrest that peaked on January 8 and 9, posing one of the largest challenges to Iran's leadership in years.
The government responded with a violent crackdown that killed thousands. The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) has recorded more than 7,000 deaths, warning the full toll is likely far higher. Iranian officials acknowledge more than 3,000 deaths but attribute the violence to "terrorist acts" they say were fuelled by the United States and Israel.
The January crackdown initially prompted Trump to threaten military intervention on the protesters' behalf, though his focus soon pivoted to Iran's nuclear programme, which Western governments believe is aimed at developing an atomic weapon, a charge Tehran denies.
Since then, Washington has carried out a sweeping military buildup in the region designed to pressure Tehran into accepting a deal, even as the two sides pursue negotiations. The US has deployed the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln to the Arabian Sea, while a second carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, has arrived at a US base in Crete en route to the region.
The convergence of military posturing, diplomatic urgency, and domestic unrest leaves Iran navigating multiple pressure points simultaneously as Thursday's Geneva session approaches.
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