Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Russia on Monday, expected to meet President Vladimir Putin and seek Moscow’s support. The visit follows his trips to mediators Pakistan and Oman to discuss the widening Middle East conflict, while peace efforts between Tehran and Washington remain on hold.
Russia and Iran are close strategic partners, but Moscow has been cautious about being drawn into recent Middle East conflicts as it continues its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Blaming the US for talks failure, Araghchi said the United States was responsible for the collapse of a first round of negotiations in Pakistan in mid-April. “The US approaches caused the previous round of negotiations, despite progress, to fail to reach its goals because of the excessive demands,” he said. He also stressed that “safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz is an important global issue.” The strait’s effective closure amid the conflict has caused major disruptions to global oil and gas supplies.
Araghchi’s regional diplomacy comes amid stalled negotiations with the US, with both sides rejecting several of the other’s demands. On Saturday, US President Donald Trump canceled a planned trip to Islamabad by his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, calling talks there “sitting around talking about nothing.” In Pakistan Araghchi met the country’s military chief Asim Munir, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar. He then went to Oman, returned to Islamabad, and departed for Russia, where he is scheduled to meet Putin in St. Petersburg. Araghchi said his talks in Oman focused on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which runs between Oman and Iran.
Iran’s Fars news agency said efforts continue to create conditions for a second round of US-Iran talks, reporting that Tehran sent “written messages” to Washington via Pakistan outlining Iran’s red lines, including nuclear issues and the Strait of Hormuz. US outlet Axios reported that Iran had submitted a proposal to reopen the strait and end the war, while seeking to postpone nuclear negotiations to a later stage. Washington demands Tehran stop uranium enrichment, alleging weapons intent; Tehran maintains its nuclear program is peaceful.
Edited by: Louis Oelofse