Iran expresses gratitude to Türkiye, regional countries for their 'goodwill' in US talks

ISTANBUL

Iran expressed on Tuesday its gratitude to Türkiye and regional countries for their "goodwill and good offices" to reduce tensions in the region and create conditions for diplomatic talks between Tehran and Washington.

"We believe that regional countries can play a constructive and positive role in shaping diplomatic processes and helping to reduce tensions," Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said in comments carried by the state news agency IRNA during his weekly press conference in Tehran.

Commenting on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the US on Tuesday, he urged Washington “not to allow others to decide" the US foreign policy.

Netanyahu is set to travel to the US on Tuesday for talks with US President Donald Trump, in a trip seen as aiming to “shape” the ongoing negotiations between Tehran and Washington.

Baghaei accused Israel of "turning Iran's peaceful program into an artificial crisis."

The talks between Tehran and Washington resumed in Muscat on Friday with Omani mediation, after nearly eight months of suspension since a US-backed Israeli attack on Iran last June.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called the talks a “good start,” and noted that they “can also have a good continuation.”

Araghchi held separate phone calls on Monday with his Turkish, Egyptian, and Saudi counterparts to brief them on the latest round of nuclear negotiations with the US.

Tension has escalated between Washington and Tehran, fueled by an American military buildup in the Persian Gulf and repeated threats of military action by Trump.