Iran Calls on the US to Adopt 'Realistic, Pragmatic' Approach

The head of the Iranian delegation, Ali Bagheri-Kani, leaving the last round of negotiations in Vienna (EPA)
The head of the Iranian delegation, Ali Bagheri-Kani, leaving the last round of negotiations in Vienna (EPA)
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Iran Calls on the US to Adopt 'Realistic, Pragmatic' Approach

The head of the Iranian delegation, Ali Bagheri-Kani, leaving the last round of negotiations in Vienna (EPA)
The head of the Iranian delegation, Ali Bagheri-Kani, leaving the last round of negotiations in Vienna (EPA)

The process of examining the ideas proposed by the European Union coordinator started immediately after the return of the Iranian negotiating delegation from Vienna, reported Nour News.

The website, affiliated with Iran's Supreme National Security Council, indicated that immediately after the return of the Iranian negotiating delegation from Vienna, the process of examining the ideas proposed by the EU coordinator is ongoing at the expert level.

It also noted that no high-level meeting has yet been held in Tehran to review the ideas of the coordinator, and according to the usual procedure, after the completion of the expert review process.

The final assessment will present the preliminary results to the appropriate decision-making levels.

Iranian media quoted Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian as saying that Iran had sent a message to the US through European officials.

In a telephone conversation with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, Abdollahian said: "We hope that the American side creates the situation for agreeing on the final text by adopting a realistic and pragmatic approach toward the rightful and legal demands of Iran."

A statement from the Foreign Ministry said that Cavusoglu expressed his hope that the negotiations would end soon, achieving the rights of the Iranian people and the common interests of all parties.

Meanwhile, Iranian state television quoted Russia's representative to international organizations in Vienna, Mikhail Ulyanov, as saying there is a possibility of rewriting the 2015 nuclear agreement, stressing the need to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue sooner or later.

Ulyanov wondered whether the text announced by the EU is "final," noting that some amendments had been done to the deal in March before the negotiations faltered.

The diplomat reiterated Russia's support for the Iranian position in the negotiations.

He said that all parties must be satisfied with the final text, especially Iran, saying Tehran is a victim of the US' maximum pressure policy and has the right to express its positions.

"If Iran wants to make changes in the text, it will have our support."

Notably, major media websites in Iran protested the final text submitted by the European Union (EU) at the end of the round of Vienna negotiations to revive the nuclear agreement.

"Kayhan" newspaper, which is closely affiliated to the cleric-led country's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, said that the EU's proposal for brokering a deal is "catastrophic" and "damaging," adding that talks "have yet to yield a result that Iran wants."

Nournews website said the EU as the coordinator of the talks lacked the authority to “present its proposals as the final text.”

The vice-chairman of the Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, Ibrahim Azizi, said that the Commission has yet to receive any final text or draft from the negotiations.

"The final text must provide for our national interests and the strategic goals of the regime," said Azizi, adding that the Iranian Foreign Minister and his deputy will attend a meeting for the National Security parliamentary committee.



Pakistan Fears Militants Will Thrive on Restive Border if Iran Destabilized

Pakistani security personnel stand guard as pilgrims (back) who evacuated from Iran walk at the Pakistan-Iran border in Taftan on June 16, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Pakistani security personnel stand guard as pilgrims (back) who evacuated from Iran walk at the Pakistan-Iran border in Taftan on June 16, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
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Pakistan Fears Militants Will Thrive on Restive Border if Iran Destabilized

Pakistani security personnel stand guard as pilgrims (back) who evacuated from Iran walk at the Pakistan-Iran border in Taftan on June 16, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
Pakistani security personnel stand guard as pilgrims (back) who evacuated from Iran walk at the Pakistan-Iran border in Taftan on June 16, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

Separatist and extremist militants on the Pakistan-Iran border could take advantage of any collapse of authority in Iran, fears that Pakistan’s army chief pressed in a meeting this week with the US President Donald Trump. Anti-Iranian and anti-Pakistan outfits operate on both sides of the 560-mile (900km) long border. As Israel bombs Iran's nuclear program, its officials have repeatedly indicated that they are seeking to destabilize the Iranian government or see it toppled.

As well as worrying about chaos spilling over from Iran, Pakistan is concerned about the precedent set by Israel of attacking the nuclear installations of another country. Nuclear-armed rivals Pakistan and India fought a four-day conflict in May, Reuters said.

Following a Wednesday lunch at the White House with Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, Trump said: “They’re not happy about anything”, referring to Pakistan's views on the Israel-Iran conflict. Pakistan’s military said on Thursday that the two had discussed Iran,“with both leaders emphasizing the importance of resolution of the conflict”.

Pakistan has condemned Israel’s attack on Iran as a violation of international law. “This is for us a very serious issue what is happening in our brotherly country of Iran,” Shafqat Ali Khan, spokesman for Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on Thursday. “It imperils the entire regional security structures, it impacts us deeply.”

Some of the militant groups on the border have welcomed the upheaval. Jaish al-Adl (JaA), an Iranian militant group which operates from Pakistan, said Israel’s conflict with Iran was a great opportunity.

“Jaish al-Adl extends the hand of brotherhood and friendship to all the people of Iran and calls on all people, especially the people of Baluchistan, as well as the armed forces, to join the ranks of the Resistance,” the group said in a statement on June 13.

Conversely, Pakistan fears that separatist militants from its own Baluch minority, which are based in Iran, will also seek to step up attacks.

"There’s a fear of ungoverned spaces, which would be fertile ground for terrorist groups," said Maleeha Lodhi, a former Pakistani ambassador to Washington.

Pakistan has unstable borders with Taliban-run Afghanistan and arch-rival India. It does not want to add another volatile frontier on its long border with Iran.

The Iran-Pakistan border region is populated with ethnic Baluch, a minority in both countries who have long complained about discrimination and launched separatist movements. On Pakistan’s side, the region is a province called Balochistan and in Iran it is Sistan-Baluchistan.

Until Israel's bombing of Iran, Tehran was closer to Pakistan’s arch-rival India. Pakistan and Iran had even traded air strikes last year, accusing each other of harboring Baluch militants. But the attack on Iran has upended alliances, as India has not condemned Israel's bombing campaign.

China has also said that it is deeply concerned about the security situation in Balochistan, with the area being a focus of Beijing’s multi-billion dollar infrastructure investment program in Pakistan, centered on the new Chinese-run port of Gwadar. Baluch militant groups in Pakistan have previously targeted Chinese personnel and projects.

Simbal Khan, an analyst based in Islamabad, said the different Baluch groups could morph into a “greater Baluchistan” movement which seeks to carve out a new nation from the Baluch areas of Pakistan and Iran.

“They’re all going to fight together if this blows up,” said Khan.