Shafaq News- Tehran

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi stated on Tuesday that any ceasefire with the United States and Israel must include firm security guarantees preventing further attacks on Iranian territory.

In remarks to Shargh newspaper, Gharibabadi stressed that a truce would require clear commitments ensuring military strikes against Iran do not recur, warning that an agreement without such assurances would lack credibility. He also argued that Tehran did not initiate the conflict and characterized Iran’s missile launches as “legitimate self-defense” under Article 51 of the UN Charter.

Diplomatic activity, he added, has intensified in recent days, with China, Russia, France, and several regional states attempting mediation and seeking to narrow differences between the parties.

US President Donald Trump, in an interview with Fox News, indicated that negotiations with Tehran remain possible but depend on proposed terms. He claimed Iran “badly wants to talk,” while criticizing Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and describing the outcome of the recent US military operation as “way beyond expectation.”

Trump had warned that Iran could face a strike “20 times stronger” than previous attacks if it attempts to block oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, a key corridor for global energy trade. However, Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani rejected the warning on X, declaring that the Ashura-inspired Iranian people “do not fear such threats” and cautioning that further escalation could carry consequences for Washington.

The United States and Israel launched a series of strikes on Iranian targets on February 28, causing extensive damage, civilian casualties, and the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with several senior commanders from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Iran responded with retaliatory actions that affected multiple countries across the region, including Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia.