Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi has already visited Islamabad and Muscat to closely coordinate with regional partners

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi has arrived in Russia, where he is expected to meet President Vladimir Putin and other top officials to discuss the ongoing Middle East conflict amid stalled talks with the US.

The Iranian delegation's plane landed in St. Petersburg at around 5:30am local time on Monday. Iranian Ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali said Araghchi would hold consultations with Russian officials on "the current status of talks, the ceasefire, and developments around the conflict" with the US and Israel.

Russia's Foreign Ministry earlier confirmed Araghchi's visit, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Putin had a meeting with the Iranian diplomat on his schedule.

The trip marks the final leg of Araghchi's regional tour of Pakistan, Oman, and Russia, which he has described as an effort to "closely coordinate" with partners amid the standoff with Washington and West Jerusalem.

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In Pakistan, he shared Tehran's position on a "workable framework to permanently end the war on Iran," while adding that it remained to be seen whether the US was "truly serious about diplomacy."

In Oman, Araghchi said discussions focused on bilateral matters and regional developments, including ways to ensure safe transit in the Strait of Hormuz, which he described as a matter of interest to littoral states, regional neighbors, and the wider world.

US President Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner were reportedly on standby to fly to Pakistan for potential negotiations over the weekend, but Tehran rejected any direct talks with US representatives during Araghchi's tour.

However, Araghchi reportedly handed Pakistan, acting as mediator, a document intended for Washington outside the formal negotiating process. The document outlined Iran's key "red lines," including issues related to Hormuz and Iran's nuclear energy program.

Washington indefinitely extended the ceasefire with Iran earlier this week, expecting a "unified" proposal from Tehran while keeping a US blockade of Iranian ports in place. The standoff around the Strait of Hormuz has rattled global markets, pushing Brent crude above $100 per barrel, while Trump has made clear that there is no firm timeline for ending the war.

The US president further raised the stakes by saying he had ordered the US Navy to "shoot and kill" any Iranian boats found laying mines in the waterway. Tehran considers the blockade a direct breach of the ceasefire and has argued that any talks are pointless as long as it remains in place and Israel continues its attacks on Lebanon.

(RT.com)