US decision-making takes place ‘elsewhere’, Iran’s Mohsen Rezaei says

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Thursday that the United States is not serious about lifting sanctions and is acting contrary to its stated commitments.

“The United States is not serious about lifting sanctions and has acted contrary to its claims by escalating sanctions and engaging in maritime piracy,” Baghaei said. “When the other side is unable to fulfill its commitments during a ceasefire period, how can there be even minimal trust that it would abide by a longer-term agreement?

Baghaei added that negotiations between Tehran and Washington are “not conventional” and have a “very bloody history.”

The United Arab Emirates’ foreign ministry banned citizens from traveling to Iran, Lebanon and Iraq on Thursday, citing regional developments.

The ministry also urged all Emiratis currently in those countries to leave immediately and return to the United Arab Emirates as soon as possible.

The ministry called on citizens to follow its official guidance and advisories, and urged those in Iran, Lebanon and Iraq to contact authorities via a dedicated hotline as part of precautionary measures to safeguard their well-being.

The US Senate on Thursday rejected Democrats’ sixth attempt to limit President Donald Trump’s authority to wage war on Iran, as the conflict approaches a key 60-day deadline under the War Powers Resolution.

A procedural vote to advance the measure, introduced by Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff of California, failed 47 to 50.

The resolution would have directed Trump to remove US forces from hostilities with Iran.

Republican Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Susan Collins of Maine voted in favor of advancing the measure, while Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was the only Democrat to oppose it.

Collins had voted against previous Iran war powers resolutions.

President Donald Trump said on Thursday Iran is "dying" to reach an agreement with the United States, while defending his military campaign and the naval blockade imposed after talks faltered.

“I mean, Iran is dying to make a deal. I can only tell you that,” Trump told reporters at the White House, adding: “They want to make a deal.”

Trump also rejected criticism of his approach, saying Iran must not obtain a nuclear weapon. “The bottom line is for this world, for our country, but certainly for Israel, the Middle East and Europe, much closer, you cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon,” he said.

"They killed 42,000 innocent, non-weapon-carrying people... I'm trying to save that country... This is a rough group, but we have decimated them, and their economy is a disaster. So we'll see how long they hold out."

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Iranians deserve a “new era” beyond what he called the Islamic Republic’s “corrupt and shambolic” rule, citing the collapse of Iran’s currency and strain on its oil industry under Washington’s pressure campaign.

“Amid the impact of Economic Fury, Iran’s currency has hit an all-time low,” Bessent wrote on X, referring to the US economic pressure campaign.

“The Iranian people deserve a new era, which the corrupt and shambolic Iranian regime cannot provide,” he added.

“With their oil industry closing and their currency plummeting, it is past time for the Iranian regime to concede that the people of Iran deserve much better than the ruins of their current regime can provide,” Bessent said.