Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Wednesday denounced Israeli-American Miriam Adelson for “pushing dramatic claims about Iran” through Israel Hayom, an Israeli media outlet founded by Adelson’s late husband, casino and hospitality mogul Sheldon Adelson.
“Whenever Miriam Adelson’s mouthpiece pushes a dramatic claim about Iran, it’s worth asking who it serves. Even the US president has acknowledged where her primary loyalties lie,” Araghchi wrote on X/Twitter.
“In its latest piece, Adelson’s outlet declared, just an hour before [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu’s White House visit, that Iran ‘deceived’ [US President Donald] Trump,” he accused.
“The facts: no executions have taken place, no court process has been concluded, and more than 2,000 prisoners have been pardoned,” he claimed, referring to the anti-regime protests that have occured across Iran for over eight weeks.
“Before buying the narrative being peddled, consider who benefits from it, and who may actually be doing the deceiving,” he alleged, accusing Adelson of having pro-Israel bias against the interests of the US – an old antisemitic trope of double-loyalties.
Araghchi claims solution in Iran talks will be ‘diplomatic’ in RT interview
Meanwhile, Araghchi spoke to state-controlled Russia Today in an interview broadcast on Tuesday.
During the interview, the foreign minister argued that “there is no solution but a diplomatic solution” to the recently resumed talks between Washington and Tehran.
He added that technology and progress cannot be destroyed through bombings and military threats, which caused the US to lose trust after it bombed Iran in the middle of a negotiation process during the Israel-Iran war last June, in his view.
“We still do not have full trust in Americans. We were in the middle of negotiations last June when they decided to attack us. That was a very bad experience for us,” he told RT.
Iran is fully committed to a diplomatic settlement, while also preparing for the possibility of a renewed conflict, he asserted.
Araghchi also claimed that Iran’s uranium enrichment program is “strictly peaceful and rooted in the country’s sovereign rights.”
Iran would be prepared to offer guarantees that it will not pursue nuclear weapons, calling such assurances “doable and achievable” if both sides show goodwill, Araghchi claimed.
He also ruled out negotiations on the Islamic Republic’s ballistic missile program or its proxy network across the region, saying these are unrelated to the nuclear issue. “We only negotiate about our nuclear program with the US,” he asserted, describing other demands as “absolutely” off the table.
Iran would be ready for confrontation if diplomatic routes collapse, he stated. “We are prepared for a diplomatic solution as much as we are prepared to defend ourselves against any new aggression.”
Iran’s military preparedness has improved both “quantity-wise and quality-wise,” since June, Araghchi claimed.
He also described Netanyahu as a “warmonger” who tries to “drag Washington into a wider war with Iran.” In the event that Iran is attacked, it would retaliate by attacking US assets and bases across the Middle East, he warned.
However, Araghchi also claimed that Iran would seriously attempt to avoid war if the US is also serious, noting that Washington holds the responsibility to provide guarantees that negotiations will not be “accompanied by military action.”
“We have learned our lessons on war and diplomacy. Now we are prepared for both,” he concluded.
Araghchi uses 47th anniversary of Islamic Revolution to denounce US, Israel, anti-regime protests
Additionally, Araghchi wrote a post on X celebrating the 47th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution on Wednesday.
He referred to how “scholars” call it the “last great revolution of the 20th Century,” and denounced how Iran has faced many difficulties over the past year, including being subjected to “an unprecedented attack by two nuclear-armed regimes and then a massive terrorist operation,” referring to Israel and the US’s airstrikes on Iran last June, and the ongoing nationwide protests against the regime.
Iran stands strong, he affirmed, hoping that “dialogue” will “prevail over war” in the coming year.
“Our preference is diplomacy, and a deal on Iran’s peaceful nuclear program is achievable, but only if fair and balanced,” he asserted.
“To this end, Iran will not shy away from defending its sovereignty, whatever the cost. As millions of Iranians once again made clear today – our rights and our dignity are not for sale,” he concluded.