US sending mixed messages on nuclear talks, Iran deputy FM says

Data released on Monday by the US-based advocacy group United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) shows that Tehran shipped 6.86 billion barrels of oil in October — nearly 2.2 million barrels per day — valued at about 4.4 billion dollars.

According to the tracker, roughly 90 percent of Iran’s exports were destined for China.

Separately, TankerTrackers reported on Sunday that Iran’s oil exports reached a record 2.3 million barrels per day in October, the highest level in seven years for the sanctions-hit theocracy.

UANI said most shipments pass through Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf on reflagged or ghost tankers operating without transponders. The group said the trade is sustaining Iran’s military industries and regional proxies.

The US Treasury announced new sanctions last month on China-based buyers and refineries accused of processing sanctioned crude, but enforcement remains inconsistent.

Sanctions experts say the dynamic reflects a broader reality in which restrictions squeeze ordinary Iranians while enriching politically connected insiders and deepening economic ties with China.

“Sanctions have had an impact, there’s no question,” said Gregory Brew, a Middle East and energy expert, on Iran International’s Eye for Iran podcast. “But the idea that they can be used to change state behavior, I think that age is coming to an end.”

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  Oil sanctions squeeze Iranians as buoyant flows to China enrich elite

Despite the Trump administration’s pressure, Iran continues to earn over 4 billion dollars a month from oil sales.

The announcement came as President Donald Trump hosted Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at the White House for landmark talks, the first visit by a Syrian president to Washington.

The Treasury order replaced a May 23 waiver and effectively extends the suspension of some of the toughest US sanctions on Syria.

The department said the move signaled its "commitment to continued sanctions relief for Syria,” while maintaining restrictions linked to Iran and Russia.

"The suspension halts the imposition of sanctions pursuant to the Caesar Act except for certain transactions involving the governments of Russia and Iran, or the transfer of provisions of Russian-origin or Iranian-origin goods, technology, software, funds, financing, or services," the Treasury said.

The 2019 Caesar Act aimed at cutting financial support to the former government and entities tied to abuses during the civil war that began in 2011.

Sharaa’s visit marked a turnaround for the former Islamist commander who toppled longtime leader Bashar al-Assad, an ally of Iran, in December and has since sought to rebuild relations with Western and regional governments.

The White House meeting followed Washington’s decision to remove Sharaa from the US list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists.

A report by Reuters citing an unnamed US official said removing the remaining Syria sanctions, including the Caesar Act, would require congressional action, which the administration would support.

“By strengthening the Axis of Resistance and supporting unity-building movements across the Islamic world, the ministry of foreign affairs has devoted a significant portion of its capacity to providing political and diplomatic backing for the Resistance Front,” he said.

The term "axis of resistance" is used by the Islamic Republic to describe a network of allied groups in the region, including Palestinian militant organizations, Lebanon’s Hezbollah, several factions in Iraq and Syria, and the Houthi movement in Yemen.

Araghchi told the lawmakers that the foreign ministry’s activities over the past 14 months have followed four main strategic tracks. 

According to him, the first, focused on security diplomacy, covers deterrence, defense, and resistance coordination. The second on economic and development diplomacy, including “resistance economy” initiatives. The third centered on building regional influence and the fourth was aimed at shaping ideas and narratives through think-tank, public, and media diplomacy.

He described recent months as a period of intensified confrontation involving the United States and Israel, citing assassinations and airstrikes across the region, including attacks on Hamas and Hezbollah figures, as justification for increased diplomatic engagement.

"Under these circumstances, a significant portion of the Foreign Ministry’s efforts has been devoted to supporting the axis of resistance, effectively functioning as the foreign ministry of the axis."

Western governments have renewed pressure on Tehran to engage in direct talks not only over its nuclear and missile programs, but also its continued backing of armed groups across the Middle East.

They argue that Iran’s support for militias in Lebanon, Iraq, and Yemen fuels instability in the region.

Iran’s diplomatic agenda, Araghchi said, also sought to build a “multipolar order,” defend national sovereignty, and counter Western sanctions through cooperation with blocs such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, BRICS, and the Non-Aligned Movement.

According to the Times, US strikes earlier this year failed to eliminate Iran’s enrichment capacity, and uncertainty remains over the location and scale of Tehran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium. 

Analysts cited in the report warned that the lack of diplomacy or inspection access leaves both sides on alert, with Israel signaling readiness to act again if Iran moves closer to a weapon capability.

The Times said Iran has refused inspectors access to new underground enrichment sites such as “Pickaxe Mountain” near Natanz nuclear site and continues to face renewed United Nations sanctions and severe economic pressure. 

Regional powers are urging restraint and fresh negotiations but acknowledge little progress as Tehran and Washington exchange blame over the failure of talks.

The International Atomic Energy Agency told the Financial Times last week that most of Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile appears to have survived the conflict but cannot be verified without access. 

The allegation was “so absurd and baseless that our embassy initially saw no need to respond,” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday, adding that both the Mexican foreign ministry and its intelligence agencies had confirmed there was no such case.

“This is part of the Zionist regime’s ongoing effort to destroy Iran’s friendly relations with other states,” he told reporters at his weekly press briefing in Tehran.

Trump ‘confession’ filed at UN

Baghaei also said Iran has officially submitted US president Donald Trump’s recent comments to the United Nations as evidence of Washington’s involvement in Israeli military actions against Iran.

“This admission of a crime establishes the full responsibility of the US government,” he said. Iran is working with its judiciary and the president’s legal office to pursue international proceedings, Baghaei added.

Last week, Trump said he directed Israel’s strike on Iran during the June conflict. “Israel attacked first. That attack was very, very powerful. I was very much in charge of that,” US president told reporters last week.

Tehran, Baghaei said, is also documenting what it calls US and Israeli aggression for future legal use.

“We are seriously pursuing the documentation of the military aggression by the Israeli regime and the United States, and we are also examining all available international mechanisms to seek justice and file a complaint against the US,” he added.

Iran on agenda for IAEA meeting

On the nuclear file, Baghaei said it was not unusual for Iran’s nuclear activities to appear on the agenda of the International Atomic Energy Agency’s next Board of Governors meeting, adding that Western powers may seek to use the session to renew political pressure.

He also dismissed NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte’s recent comments accusing Iran and Russia of undermining international rules.

“Most of the actions carried out by NATO members themselves are the very ones they accuse others of committing. This requires no analysis – one only needs to look at the facts to see which side has violated international law and the UN Charter: Iran or the NATO member states,” he said, adding that the alliance’s interventions in Afghanistan and beyond had repeatedly breached international law.

Inspectors visit nuclear sites

IAEA inspectors, Baghaei said, visited several Iranian nuclear facilities last week, including the Tehran Research Reactor. Any further inspection requests, he added, would be reviewed “in coordination with the Supreme National Security Council.”

His remarks followed IAEA chief Rafael Grossi’s statement to France 24 that Iran still holds highly enriched uranium and the technical capacity to build a nuclear weapon despite recent Israeli and US attacks on its facilities.

Sanctions relief

Asked about Trump’s separate remark that Iran had requested the lifting of sanctions from Washington, Baghaei said lifting sanctions remains a “legitimate demand of the Iranian people” rather than a gesture of goodwill by Washington.

“These sanctions have been unjustly imposed on every Iranian for decades, and their humanitarian impact amounts to a crime against humanity,” he said.

Iran continues to insist on the removal of what it calls “unlawful restrictions” as a prerequisite in any future negotiations with Western powers, he added.