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Iran’s foreign ministry said on Monday that a communication channel between Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff remains open, after Trump said Tehran had reached out about possible talks.
“The communication channel between Mr Araghchi and the US president’s special representative is open, and whenever necessary, messages are exchanged through that channel,” foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said.
He added that Iran remained committed to diplomacy. “We have always adhered to the principle of diplomacy and negotiation, of course a negotiation that is two-sided,” he said.
Trump told reporters on Sunday that Iran had contacted the United States and proposed holding talks on a nuclear deal.
German lawmaker Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann on Monday called on the European Union to designate Iran’s Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization.
“The Iranian Revolutionary Guard must be placed on the EU’s terror list as soon as possible,” she wrote on X. “It is a major failure that this has not happened yet. Contrary to previous claims, this is possible – and there is truly enough evidence.”
Strack-Zimmermann chairs the European Parliament’s defence committee.
Iran’s clerical leadership has dismissed Trump’s calls to stop killing protesters and bears responsibility for the violence, said Marshall S. Billingslea, a former US special envoy and assistant secretary of the treasury for terrorist financing.
“The mullahs in Tehran have clearly decided to ignore President Trump’s repeated warnings to not kill protestors,” he wrote.“They are soaking their hands in blood.”
“I suspect they may soon ‘find out,’” he said, without elaborating on what consequences he was referring to.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz condemned violence against Iranian protesters, calling it a sign of the government’s weakness.
Merz said during a visit to India on Monday that the use of “disproportionate and brutal violence” against protesters was “a sign of weakness.”
“We condemn this violence in the strongest possible terms,” Merz said. “This violence is not an expression of strength, but rather a sign of weakness. This violence must end.”
China said on Monday it hoped Iran’s government would overcome current difficulties and maintain stability, as deadly protests continue across the country.
Asked about US President Donald Trump’s threat to intervene militarily on behalf of protesters, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson rejected outside involvement and emphasized state sovereignty.
“We have always opposed interference in other countries’ internal affairs and consistently advocated that the sovereignty and security of all nations should be fully protected by international law,” spokesperson Mao Ning told a regular news briefing.
