‘Ali Larijani, head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said that "contrary to the hype of the contrived media war, structural arrangements for negotiations are progressing.’ 3/3

‘Iran's presidency said Pezeshkian told Erdogan that any successful negotiation would depend on the abandonment of "warmongering and threatening actions in the region."’ 2/3

‘Both the US and Iran have said they are open to negotiations, but Trump has conditioned talks on ending Iran's uranium enrichment along with its support for proxies in the region, and limits on its ballistic missiles – all seen as red lines for the regime.’ 2/2

‘With tensions heightened, Iranian authorities rushed to deny that several incidents on Saturday were linked to any attack or sabotage, including an explosion in the southern Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas that local firefighters said was caused by a gas leak.’ 2/2

‘Fresh conflict in Afghanistan would fuel the violent and chaotic conditions that benefit militants there—including ISIS-K, which in recent years has staged attacks as far afield as Iran and Russia and had plots foiled in Europe and the United States.’ 3/3

‘If Afghanistan and Pakistan truly do come to blows, the fighting could not just destabilize the two countries; it could spur militant attacks against Americans and American interests in South Asia, cause chaos in the wider region, and even trigger further conflict between India and Pakistan.’ 2/3

‘Fresh conflict in Afghanistan would fuel the violent and chaotic conditions that benefit militants there—including ISIS-K, which in recent years has staged attacks as far afield as Iran and Russia and had plots foiled in Europe and the United States.’ 3/3

‘If Afghanistan and Pakistan truly do come to blows, the fighting could not just destabilize the two countries; it could spur militant attacks against Americans and American interests in South Asia, cause chaos in the wider region, and even trigger further conflict between India and Pakistan.’ 2/3

‘Others were positioned near the Strait of Hormuz and the eastern Mediterranean, a second official said. Additional U.S. military assets, including land-based air defenses, are expected to flow into the region, officials have said.’ 2/2

‘A fractured Iran could spiral into civil war as happened after the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, two of the Western diplomats warned, unleashing an influx of refugees, fueling Islamist militancy and disrupting oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, a global energy chokepoint.’ 4/4

‘The Western source said they believed Trump's goal appeared to be to engineer a change in leadership, rather than "topple the regime," an outcome that would be similar to Venezuela, where U.S. intervention replaced the president without a wholesale change of government.’ 3/4

‘Two U.S. sources familiar with the discussions said Trump wanted to create conditions for "regime change" after a crackdown crushed a nationwide protest movement earlier this month, killing thousands of people.’ 2/4 www.reuters.com/world/middle...

‘Carney is expected to visit India in the coming weeks as part of the reset. He and Prime Minister Narendra Modi restarted talks in November toward a comprehensive economic partnership agreement.’ 2/2