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An Iranian conservative daily warned Tuesday that the country could expel international nuclear inspectors and relocate its enriched uranium if military threats intensify, injecting new tension into Tehran-Washington relations.
The warning came just hours before Rafael Grossi, the director of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was due to arrive in Tehran.
“If a serious military threat emerges, Iran will expel the inspectors, cut their access, and move nuclear materials to locations beyond reach,” Farhikhtegan wrote.
It accused the IAEA of political bias and said Grossi’s previous visits had yielded cooperation only from Iran. “Despite Iran’s compliance, the agency has published reports that fuel anti-Iran resolutions,” it added.
Grossi’s visit coincides with the anticipated second round of negotiations between Iranian and US officials. While details of the agenda remain unclear, the talks have stirred strong opposition across Iran’s ultraconservative press, particularly following mixed signals from Washington.
After the first round of negotiations in Oman on Saturday, US envoy Steve Witkoff said Monday that Iran might be allowed to continue low-level enrichment under a deal resembling the original JCPOA. But on Tuesday, he tweeted that “Iran must stop and eliminate its nuclear enrichment and weaponization program.”
“A deal with Iran will only be completed if it is a Trump deal," the special envoy said.
The hardline daily Kayhan, overseen by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's office, focused on Tuesday on Witkoff’s new comments and accused the US of using diplomacy to mask coercive aims.
Editor Hossein Shariatmadari wrote that Witkoff’s offer in earlier talks had “no more value than a cheap political ruse,” adding that the US had “flunked its first test of sincerity.”
“The Americans pretend to negotiate, but their demands expose their true intentions—disarming the Islamic Republic and and plowing its land and people,” Shariatmadari said.
Meanwhile, senior Iranian military adviser Brigadier General Hossein Ashtari told ILNA news agency that Tehran’s stance would not change under pressure.
“Our positions are firm. It is the Americans and the Zionists who must adjust to Iran’s terms,” he said.
With nuclear inspectors in Tehran and diplomacy on a knife’s edge, Iran’s conservative media are pushing a dual message: cooperation remains conditional, but retaliation, if provoked, would be decisive.
With uncertainty over the venue and agenda clouding the second round of Iran-US talks, Iranians are growing anxious that President Donald Trump’s patience may soon run out.
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Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Wednesday that uranium enrichment is not open to negotiation, reaffirming Tehran’s red line as the United States signals it seeks to end Iran’s nuclear program entirely.
“The principle of enrichment is not subject to negotiation,” Araghchi said. His remarks came a day after the White House stated that President Donald Trump wants the complete dismantling of Iran’s nuclear program.
Araghchi added that talks could move forward if Washington adopts a more constructive approach. “If the Americans come with a constructive approach, I’m hopeful we can begin talks on the framework of a possible agreement,” he said. “But if they continue with contradictory and conflicting positions, we will face difficulties.”
He also announced that he is carrying a message from Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to Russian President Vladimir Putin during his upcoming visit to Moscow.
Iran will not bow to pressure from any foreign power and will respond firmly to threats, Judiciary Spokesman Asghar Jahangir said on Wednesday during his first press conference of the Iranian year.
“What is certain is that Iran stands firm and does not submit to pressure from any power,” he said.
“This option for indirect talks comes from the Islamic Republic’s decision to fight for national interests while also using the window of diplomacy,” he added.
In the days leading up to the second round of talks between Iranian and US delegations, confusion persisted over the venue and agenda of the meeting.
The two sides had initially agreed to meet in Rome. However, a disagreement reportedly arose between Iranian officials—who insisted on holding the meeting at the Omani Embassy in Rome—and the Italian government, which maintained that the talks should take place at the Italian Foreign Ministry. This prompted Tehran to make a last-minute announcement on the evening of April 14 that the meeting would instead be held in Oman.
The US side has not publicly commented on the dispute over the location. However, President Donald Trump, who had previously expressed cautious optimism following the first round, criticized the week-long gap between meetings, suggesting that Iran was stalling. “They've got to go fast, because they're fairly close to having one, and they're not going to have one,” he said, referring to Iran’s nuclear capability.
Iranian officials had also requested that Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi attend the Rome meeting, though they did not provide an explanation for the request.
While Iran’s state broadcaster—heavily influenced by the ultraconservative Paydari Party—has been reluctant to cover the first and second meetings with the Americans, the government broke its silence by releasing previously undisclosed information exclusively to the Tehran Times, an English-language daily. Notably, this disclosure bypassed the many Persian-language newspapers published in Tehran.
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei also weighed in on the talks during a speech on Tuesday. Echoing Trump’s earlier tone, he expressed cautious optimism and said the Iranian negotiating team had performed well.
In a commentary, Eco Iran, a Telegram channel known for serious coverage of domestic politics and economics, wrote: “Despite their historic hostility, an agreement is still possible between Tehran and Washington.” The channel added that Trump had succeeded in pushing Tehran to move its red lines. “The meeting showed that neither Iran nor the United States wants another war in the region,” it added.
Eco Iran also noted growing anxiety among Iranians at home, with many watching the negotiations closely while fearing that Trump’s patience might wear thin. The channel added that Israel is monitoring the talks with concern—especially as Trump may offer Saudi Arabia access to nuclear technology and uranium enrichment during his upcoming visit to Riyadh.
Meanwhile, the pro-reform Telegram channel Jamaran, which is affiliated with former President Mohammad Khatami, posted that many Iranians—particularly those in the middle class—have long supported meaningful engagement with the United States. “Now that the talks have started, the Iranian people are closely watching the developments and discussing them widely,” the channel wrote.
Jamaran added that the public perception is shifting, with many now believing that the government has finally chosen negotiations as a path to address the country’s mounting challenges. It also emphasized that for more than two decades, polls have consistently shown that Iranians favor diplomacy with the West, while also demanding respect for national dignity and interests.
The centrist Telegram channel Emtedad published a commentary by journalist Davoud Heshmati, who welcomed former US Secretary of State John Kerry’s suggestion that any future agreement with Iran should be ratified by the US Senate. He argued that such a step would help reassure Iranians concerned about the possibility of a future US president walking away from the deal.
The comment reflects lingering distrust in Iran toward Trump, with many fearing that even if a new agreement is reached, it could once again be revoked by him—or a successor.
