Iran’s Araghchi Hopes For ‘Rationality’ From US Amid Signs Renewed War Could Erupt

On Sunday Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi weighed in on current peace discussions which are being mediated via Qatar. He expressed that Tehran is ready to egage in serious diplomacy but hopes to see ‘rationality’ from the US side. We previously featured details of a draft framework being offered and examined.

“We are making our efforts in this direction and hope that there is rationality on the other side to prefer diplomacy to other paths,”  Araghchi said. The statement comes amid widespread reports that the Trump White House could order a new major bombing campaign soon after Tuesday’s midterm elections.

But he also alluded to the fresh orders that Iran’s supreme commander-in-chief, which is the Ayatollah, conveyed to senior military officials.

“Our armed forces also have a very clear mission and, drawing on the experiences of the past two wars, are much stronger than before,” the FM stated.

Iran says Hormuz could be reopened within two days if conditions met…

Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei had on Saturday put his military on heightened alert, ordering military commanders to ensure an immediate and desvastating response to any threat, and notably without geographical limitation.

“Any level or type of threat must be met with an immediate, impactful, and geographically unrestricted response,” the Ayatollah – who has not been seen in public since the war began – stated.

This was reportedly the result of a meeting with senior military commanders – itself a very rare thing, given that he’s not so much as been seen in public since the assassination of his father.

Al Jazeera described the significance further, writing that “Iranians have been emphasising that if a new wave of war comes, Iran is going to go beyond the locations that it has hit in the previous rounds.”

Meanwhile some alarming videos have surfaced over the weekend showing results of some of the latest Iranian attacks on tankers.

As for the status of indirect negotiations between Tehran and Washington, Araghchi also said, “Consultations are ongoing but we have not yet reached a definitive conclusion because this conclusion depends on the answers the other side gives to our questions. There was no plan to negotiate with the American side during this trip.” So the talks are still not yet ‘direct’ and it’s unclear on if there are plans to engage in such.