Iran's stance against the development of nuclear weapons will not significantly change, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Al Jazeera on Wednesday (18 March), cautioning that the new supreme leader is yet to publicly express his view on the matter.
Araghchi said Gulf countries would have to draft a new protocol for the Strait of Hormuz after the war ends. He added that safe passage must be ensured under conditions aligned with Iranian and regional interests.
Iran shut the vital energy gateway, through which a fifth of global oil and liquefied gas passes, saying it "won't even allow a litre of oil" to reach the U.S., Israel and their partners.
Speaker of the Iranian parliament Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf had also earlier tweeted that the strait’s situation will not return to its pre-war conditions.
The U.S. has sought to build a naval coalition to escort vessels navigating the strait, with most NATO allies refusing to get involved in military operations against Iran.
NATO-member France said it would only consider a joint international coalition to secure passage through the strait following a ceasefire and prior negotiations with Tehran.
Araghchi added that an end to the war was only conceivable if the conflict is permanently over throughout the region and Iran receives compensation for damages incurred.
Asked about Iranian strikes in the Gulf not only targeting U.S. military bases but also impacting residential or commercial areas, Iran's foreign minister said this was because U.S. forces relocated to urban areas.
"Wherever there were American forces gathering, wherever there were facilities belonging to them, they were targeted. It is possible some of these places were near urban areas," the top Iranian diplomat said.
Araghchi acknowledged that regional countries are "upset and their people have been harmed or bothered" by Iranian strikes, but added that the blame lay entirely with the U.S. for starting the war on 28 February.
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Iran has reached an understanding with Oman on transit arrangements through the Strait of Hormuz, but the waterway will remain closed until the U.S. fulfils its commitments, a senior Iranian diplomat said on Saturday.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused U.S. government and Israel-aligned actors of manipulating energy markets to promote the war with Iran.
Russian strikes on the Kyiv region overnight killed 37 people, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. Zelenskyy added that the Ukrainian capital was under "virtually nonstop attack" from drones.
U.S. forces struck two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island on Sunday, with Tehran responding by launching ballistic missiles at two U.S. bases in Jordan in the first direct U.S.-Iran military escalation in weeks.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan have concluded talks in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has marked the 104th anniversary of Victory Day, honouring the decisive military victory that helped pave the way for the establishment of the Republic of Türkiye.
Uzbekistan has been named one of the world’s leading destinations for solo travelers, ranking fifth in the 2026 Solo Travel Index compiled by international travel platform Much Better Adventures.
Around five years ago, British prosecutors reportedly decided against pursuing war crime charges against Asma al-Assad, the then First Lady of Syria, because she was unlikely to return to the UK.
Central Asia is moving towards a more connected digital financial system, as rising cashless payments, expanding digital wallets and growing cross-border trade create demand for faster and cheaper ways to move money across the region.
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