Middle East Crisis Peace Talks

Iranian Foreign Minister in Russia – Meets Putin

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will visit St. Petersburg, Russia, on Monday for a meeting with Vladimir Putin, AFP reports.

“For our part, we will do everything that promotes your interests and the interests of the entire region so that peace can be achieved as soon as possible,” Putin told Araghchi, according to Russian state media.

Russia’s intention is to continue the “strategic partnership” with Iran, he adds.

Araghchi has been on the road for several days during the ongoing break in peace talks. Before Russia, he visited Oman and made two trips to Pakistan, writes the BBC.

The current Iranian proposal on the table is to loosen its grip on the Strait of Hormuz if the US lifts its blockade of Iranian ports and ends the war, according to the AP. Discussions on the country’s nuclear program are proposed to be held at a later date.

Sources: Iran has sent a new peace agreement to the US

Iran has sent a new peace agreement to the US. Its implementation would mean opening the Strait of Hormuz and ending the war, but delaying negotiations on Iran's nuclear program, several sources told Axios.

The Iranian leadership is said to be divided on the nuclear issue and postponing it would remove an obstacle. At the same time, the amendment will be difficult for Donald Trump to digest, since ending Iran's uranium enrichment and nuclear program have been two of the president's most important war goals.

According to reports, Trump will gather his team on Monday and discuss the proposal.

- The US holds all the cards, says White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales.

When the article was published, futures on Wall Street rose, while the dollar and oil prices fell, Bloomberg reports.

Friedrich Merz: Iran's Regime Humiliates the Entire US

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is directing unusually harsh criticism at the Trump administration's actions in the Iran war, Politico reports.

In a speech to a group of high school students in his home region, Merz says that the Iranians were stronger than the US expected, and that the Americans "clearly" lacked strategy when they embarked on a war that now risks being as protracted as Iraq and Afghanistan.

- An entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership, he says.

Merz was initially cautiously positive about the attacks on Iran and said that Germany shared the goal of regime change. His frustration has since grown as rising energy prices hit the already strained German economy.