Iran says US 'more realistic' on nuclear issue, as Guards begin drills in Hormuz Strait
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi adjusts glasses during a press conference following talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, December 17, 2025. PHOTO: REUTERS
Iran said on Monday that the United States's position on Iran's nuclear programme "has moved towards a more realistic one", a day ahead of a second round of US-Iranian talks in Geneva.
Tehran's foreign minister arrived in Geneva for the new round of indirect negotiations with the US, as the Revolutionary Guards began military drills in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping lane for oil and gas.
The two sides recently resumed indirect talks, mediated by Oman, after US President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened military action against Iran over a deadly crackdown on protesters last month.
Read More: Iran says potential energy, mining and aircraft deals on table in talks with US
Speaking during a visit to Hungary, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said reaching a deal with Tehran would be hard.
"I think that there's an opportunity here to diplomatically reach an agreement that addresses the things we're concerned about. We'll be very open and welcoming to that. But I don't want to overstate it either. It's going to be hard. It's been very difficult for anyone to do real deals with Iran, because we're dealing with radical ... clerics who are making theological decisions, not geopolitical ones."
But Rubio also said that "The president always prefers peaceful outcomes and negotiated outcomes to things."
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he was in Geneva to "achieve a fair and equitable deal".
"What is not on the table: submission before threats," Araghchi said on X.
Joined by nuclear experts, I will meet @rafaelmgrossi on Mon for deep technical discussion. Also meeting @badralbusaidi ahead of diplomacy with U.S. on Tues.
I am in Geneva with real ideas to achieve a fair and equitable deal.
What is not on the table: submission before threatsHe said he was meeting in Geneva with the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, "for deep technical discussion".
Grossi later confirmed the meeting on X, calling the conversation with Araghchi "in-depth" ahead of Tuesday's "important negotiations".
Just completed in-depth technical discussions with Iran’s Foreign Minister @araghchi in preparation for important negotiations scheduled for tomorrow in Geneva. pic.twitter.com/dBAinDrljc
Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation against any attack, which would choke a fifth of global oil flows and send crude prices sharply higher.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi meets with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi in Geneva, Switzerland, February 16, 2026.PHOTO : REUTERS VIA IRANIAN FM OFFICE
The waterway connects the biggest Gulf oil producers, such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq and the United Arab Emirates, with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.
Iranian guards drill at Strait of Hormuz
Iran's Revolutionary Guards conducted a drill named "Smart Control of the "Strait of Hormuz", to test the readiness
A previous attempt at negotiations collapsed when Israel launched surprise strikes on Iran, beginning a 12-day war that Washington briefly joined to bomb Iranian nuclear sites.
"A cautious assessment is that, from the discussions that have taken place in Muscat to date, at least what we have been told is that the US position on the Iranian nuclear issue has moved towards a more realistic one," said foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei, the official IRNA news agency reported.
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According to Tehran, talks mediated by Oman will be held on Tuesday in Switzerland.
Washington has previously pushed for other topics to be discussed including Iran's ballistic missiles and support for armed groups in the region.
The war games being conducted by the Guards, the ideological arm of the military, aim to prepare it for "potential security and military threats" in the strait, Iranian state TV said.
Protest crackdown
Araghchi is also set to hold talks with his Swiss and Omani counterparts as well as other international officials, Iran's foreign ministry said.
Washington has dispatched Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, the White House confirmed on Sunday.
The latest talks follow repeated threats from Trump of military action against Tehran, first over Iran's deadly crackdown on anti-government protests, and then more recently over the country's nuclear programme.
The West fears the programme is aimed at making a bomb, which Tehran denies.
On Friday, Trump said a change of government in Iran would be the "best thing that could happen", as he sent a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East to ratchet up military pressure.
His remarks came before demonstrations outside Iran against its clerical authorities swept a number of citie,s including in the US, over the weekend.
Iranians inside the country have also defied the deadly crackdown on protests last month and continued to shout slogans against the authorities from their windows.
'Viable' deal
Iran's deputy foreign minister told the BBC that Tehran would consider compromises on its uranium stockpile if Washington lifts sanctions that have crippled the country's economy.
"If we see the sincerity on their (American) part, I am sure we will be on a road to have an agreement," said Majid Takht-Ravanchi.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that any deal must involve the removal of all enriched uranium from Iran as well as Tehran's ability to enrich more.
The whereabouts of Iran's stockpile of around 400 kilogrammes of uranium enriched to 60% remains unknown, with inspectors having last seen it in June.