U.S. threats against Iran intensified after a second round of indirect nuclear talks ended without a breakthrough, as Tehran and Moscow announced joint naval drills in the Sea of Oman aimed at deterring any “unilateral action” and safeguarding maritime traffic. The twin moves underscored a rapid military buildup around the Strait of Hormuz and raised fears of a wider regional conflict.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Wednesday that “Iran would be very wise to make a deal” with President Donald Trump, acknowledging that while “some progress” was made in Geneva, “we’re still very apart on some issues.”
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Trump escalated his rhetoric on Truth Social, writing that if Iran “decide[s] not to make a Deal,” the United States may need to use an Indian Ocean airbase in the Chagos Islands “in order to eradicate a potential attack by a highly unstable and dangerous Regime.”
The Geneva session followed a first round of indirect discussions in Oman on Feb. 6. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said both sides agreed on “guiding principles” for a possible agreement, but U.S. Vice President JD Vance said Tehran had not yet accepted all of Washington’s red lines.
According to U.S. officials, Washington is demanding Iran forgo uranium enrichment on its soil and broaden negotiations to include non-nuclear issues such as Tehran’s missile stockpile. Iran maintains its nuclear program is peaceful, rejects zero enrichment and has ruled out talks on its missiles absent meaningful sanctions relief.
The stalled diplomacy unfolds alongside an expanding show of force. The USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group, with nearly 80 aircraft, was positioned about 700 kilometers (435 miles) from Iran’s coast as of Sunday, satellite imagery indicated. Trump has ordered a second carrier to the region and thousands more U.S. troops to the Gulf.
Iran, meanwhile, staged Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps war games in the Strait of Hormuz this week to prepare for “potential security and military threats,” and issued a notice to airmen of planned rocket launches across parts of the south on Thursday between 03:30 and 13:30 GMT.
Tehran on Wednesday also unveiled new joint naval exercises with Russia in the Sea of Oman set for Thursday. Rear Admiral Hassan Maqsoudlou framed the drills as a “message of peace and friendship” for regional states and a bid to “prevent any unilateral action” while enhancing coordination against threats to commercial vessels and oil tankers.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned that any new U.S. strike on Iran would carry “serious consequences,” telling Saudi Arabia’s Al-Arabiya TV that previous attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities under International Atomic Energy Agency oversight posed “real risks of a nuclear incident.” He said heightened tensions could also imperil recent advances in Iran’s relations with neighbors, particularly Saudi Arabia.
A prior negotiating effort collapsed last year after attacks by Israel on Iran set off a 12-day war, followed by U.S. strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. In January, Trump issued fresh threats following a deadly Iranian crackdown on antigovernment protesters. Tehran countered by threatening to close the Strait of Hormuz and to target U.S. bases in the region.
The exchanges prompted urgent mediation by Gulf states including Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia to contain the fallout and keep oil shipments moving through the world’s most critical energy chokepoint.
A senior U.S. official told Reuters that Iran agreed in Geneva to submit a written proposal addressing American concerns. Top U.S. national security advisers were briefed Wednesday in the White House Situation Room and told that all U.S. forces ordered to the region should be in place by mid-March.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is scheduled to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel on Feb. 28 to discuss Iran, the official said. Israel’s Kan public broadcaster reported that Israel is preparing for the possibility that Washington could authorize strikes on elements of Iran’s ballistic missile system.
Barbara Slavin, a distinguished fellow at the Stimson Center, said she expected further attacks on Iran by the United States and Israel, possibly soon. “Frankly, I do not see a basis for an agreement yet,” she said. “It doesn’t look as though these talks were very extensive. They lasted only a couple of hours … And we do have this massive buildup. So I’m very concerned.”
“We will all be very nervously checking the news for the next few days,” Slavin added, as the United States, Iran and regional powers weigh diplomacy against the risk of miscalculation at sea and in the air.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
