Preparations for attacking Iran gives US leverage in talks, ex-envoy says

Two US officials cited by the Associated Press on Wednesday said it was increasingly unlikely that the sixth round of nuclear talks with Iran tentatively set for Sunday in Oman would proceed.

Iran and the United States were due to hold a sixth round of nuclear talks over the weekend as a dispute over Iranian enrichment festers and both sides have mooted the potential for the impasse to devolve into conflict.

However, it looked increasingly unlikely that the talks would happen, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday citing two US officials, as tensions in the Middle East ratchet up.

It is not immediately clear if the security precautions in the region are linked to Iran.

The US embassy in Baghdad is set to be evacuated due to increased security threats in the region, Reuters reported on Wednesday citing an Iraqi security source and a US official.

“The State Department is set to have an ordered departure for (the) US embassy in Baghdad. The intent is to do it through commercial means, but the US military is standing by if help is requested,” one American official was quoted as saying.

The US Central Command chief Michael Kurilla, postponed testimony before congress on Thursday due to the tensions, the agency reported citing two US officials.

Iranian Defense Minister Aziz Nassirzadeh said on Wednesday that Tehran would strike American bases in the region if nuclear negotiations fail and conflict arises with the United States.

"Some officials on the other side threaten conflict if negotiations don't come to fruition. If a conflict is imposed on us... all US bases are within our reach and we will boldly target them in host countries," Nassirzadeh said during a press conference.

Iraq's state news agency, citing a Baghdad government source, said "steps related to evacuation of US diplomatic presence are not only for Iraq, but several states in Middle East."

Earlier on Wednesday the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) warned it had learned of potential threats in the Persian Gulf.

"UKMTO has been made aware of increased tensions within the region which could lead to an escalation of military activity having a direct impact on mariners," it said.

The maritime security firm advised vessels to transit the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman and Strait of Hormuz with caution.

The top US commander in the Middle East has postponed his scheduled testimony before Congress due to rising regional tensions, Reuters reported citing two US officials.

General Michael "Erik" Kurilla, who leads US Central Command, had been slated to appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday.

“People see the children of officials—those who just a few years ago couldn’t even afford a motorcycle—now owning ships, planes and industry monopolies. It raises serious questions,” national security committee member Mohammad Mehdi Shahriari was quoted as saying by Iran’s labour news outlet, ILNA.

“This behavior has created widespread distrust in society,” the relative moderate and Iran's former envoy to Germany added.

The remarks come amid a growing backlash over the arrest of the son and daughter-in-law of Tehran’s interim Friday prayer leader, Kazem Sedighi, in a high-profile corruption case.

The couple were detained by the Revolutionary Guard’s intelligence unit for alleged misconduct related to property transfers.

“One of the public’s main grievances with the system is the perception of discrimination,” Shahriari said.

“When there are economic hardships, people expect everyone to bear the burden equally. But when they see that’s not the case—when they see privilege and monopoly—they react.”

Sedighi is an appointee and close associate of supreme leader Ali Khamenei. Apart from leading the capital’s Friday prayers, he heads the state body promoting behavior deemed Islamic—the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice—which includes Iran’s police chief and the ministers of intelligence and interior.

The cleric first came under fire in March 2024, when a whistleblower accused him and his sons of unlawfully acquiring a $20 million plot of land in Tehran. He apologized publicly—to the supreme leader and the Iranian people—once his claim of innocence was proved to be false.

Sedighi was neither prosecuted nor formally investigated.

“What added insult to injury was that he remained Tehran’s interim Friday prayer leader,” Shahriari said, linking what he described as growing mistrust and a broader sense of discrimination and unequal treatment.

“If legal action is taken fairly and equally, people will have confidence in the judiciary,” he concluded. “But when people see that there is discrimination and the hardships are not shared equally, frustration builds.”

"IAEA board meeting has adjourned for evening. Speakers still on list before the vote on Iran non-compliance," The Wall Street Journal's correspondent Laurence Norman said in a post on X on Wednesday.

"Session to continue tomorrow at 0930 CET so no vote (on Iran) tonight," he added.