Iran, Tehran-Washington meeting in Turkey on Friday. No ultimatum from Trump on nuclear power

The possible meeting comes against a background of strong US military build-up in the Gulf.

According to sources, the Araghchi-Witkoff meeting is the result of intensive diplomatic efforts by Turkey, Egypt and Qatar in recent days.

Today, the foreign ministers of Ankara and Cairo had new contacts with Araghchi to discuss the organisation of the face-to-face meeting. Iranian state media also reported that President Masoud Pezeshkian had given instructions to restart negotiations with the Trump administration.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the military exercise with live fire planned for Sunday 1 and Monday 2 February in the Strait of Hormuz was not conducted by the Iranian army. Iran reportedly cancelled the exercise after a warning from the United States.

Two days ago, the US Central Command, Centcom, in charge of forces in the Middle East, warned Iran in a note that "we will not tolerate unsafe actions" in the Strait of Hormuz.

Spokesman Baghaei then denied that Iran had received a ultimatum for a nuclear deal from US President Donald Trump, as the latter claimed. "We cannot confirm Trump's claim," he stressed. "We are always honest and serious in the diplomatic process, and I must say that we did not receive the ultimatum," Baghaei stressed.

After the spokesman, the head of diplomacy in Tehran spoke. "We are ready for diplomacy, but diplomacy is incompatible with threats, intimidation and pressure. I hope we will see results soon," said Iran's Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, in a speech delivered at Imam Khomeini's mausoleum in Tehran on the occasion of the revolution anniversary celebrations.

If the voice of Iranian diplomacy seems to reach out to the US, the regime's military leadership uses a different tone. "What the enemies of this nation, particularly America, should know is that the motivation of our armed forces to fight against the enemy has never been as it is today. The slightest mistake will open the door to action and the world will see the different face of a strong Iran. No American will be safe, and the fire of the region will burn America and its comrades within itself,' said Tehran's Chief of Staff Abdolrahim Mousavi quoted by Iranian agencies.

On the Israeli side, PM Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel 'is ready for any scenario'. Faced with Iranian threats to strike Israeli and American targets, Netanyahu said: 'Whoever attacks us will face unbearable consequences'.

Meanwhile, the ambassadors of EU countries have been summoned by the Foreign Ministry since yesterday in response to the designation of the Revolutionary Guards as terrorists, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said, adding, "This is Iran's minimum action and there are other options being studied to react. The respective organisations will decide on the options in the coming days'.

He added: 'The designation was an insult and a strategic mistake. If the EU thinks that this move is an act of flattery towards the US and the Zionist regime, they are sadly mistaken'.

The European Commission, through a spokesperson, said that the Union rejects "in its entirety" the inclusion of EU armies in the list of terrorist organisations and "the accusation of terrorism as a whole". The spokesman also stressed that Tehran's choice to summon the ambassadors of EU countries to Iran was part of a "diplomatic practice" enshrined in the Vienna Convention.

Meanwhile, Keir Starmer's British government today announced a new package of sanctions against ten senior Iranian officials, accused of direct responsibility in the repressions of the latest anti-government protests that have flared up in Tehran and other cities in recent weeks. Among them is the interior minister, according to a Foreign Office release.

Intelligence units of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (Pasdaran) have arrested 85 suspected insurgents following unrest in the southwestern provinces of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, according to a statement by the local branch of the Pasdaran issued today.

"Eighty-five individuals involved in the destruction of state property during the recent riots in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari provinces have been arrested. These individuals were identified and arrested with the assistance of the local population and during operations by Pasdaran personnel,' reads the statement, broadcast by state broadcaster IRIB.