Foreign Minister Abbas Aragushi’s remarks on the eve of the Geneva talks came as the second US aircraft carrier was heading to the Middle East.
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Published February 25, 2026
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on the eve of talks between the two countries in Geneva, Switzerland, that a deal with the United States to avoid conflict was “within reach.”
Araghchi said the “historic opportunity to forge an unprecedented agreement” depended on “diplomacy being a priority,” referring to US President Donald Trump’s continued threat to use military force against Iran.
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In a statement shared on social media on Tuesday, Iran’s top diplomat added that while it remains “very clear” that the country “will not develop nuclear weapons under any circumstances”, it also recognizes the right of the Iranian people to benefit from “peaceful nuclear technology”.
The indirect talks scheduled for Thursday in Geneva will be the third round of talks between the U.S. and Iranian governments mediated by Oman, which said it hoped to see “a positive push to move further towards a deal.”
Araghchi is leading negotiations on behalf of Iran, with White House envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner representing the United States.
After recent talks in Geneva, President Trump said Iran had 10 to 15 days to reach a “meaningful agreement,” again referring to the possibility of military intervention amid a major U.S. military buildup near Iran.
Thursday’s talks come as the US Navy docks its largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, at a NATO base on the Greek island of Crete, en route to the Middle East, where the US has increased its military presence in recent weeks.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) is also conducting military exercises in the country’s south and said it had built “strong fortifications” in the area.
“The Iranian public’s mood is mixed, oscillating between fear of war and hopes for diplomacy as Americans build up their military presence in the region,” Al Jazeera’s Tohid al-Assadi, reporting from Tehran, said.
Assadi said the talks come in tandem with “popular discontent” that was “initially caused by economic hardship”, as seen in the “massive protests” across Iran in December.
“Currently, for at least the past three days, echoes of dissatisfaction have also been heard in the political and social spheres at some major universities in the capital region and across the country,” he added.
The United States has acknowledged that this has caused a U.S. dollar shortage in Iran and caused severe economic consequences, including the collapse of one of Iran’s largest banks ahead of street protests in December.
