Iran’s FM confirms contact with US envoy Witkoff, denies talks under way 

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has confirmed that messages had been exchanged with the United States, either directly or through countries in the region, amid the ongoing US-Israel war on Iran.

During an interview with Al Jazeera, Araghchi said that the contacts with the US did not mean that Tehran was in negotiations with Washington.

“I receive messages from [US special envoy Steve] Witkoff directly, as before, and this does not mean that we are in negotiations,” he said.

“There is no truth to the claim of negotiations with any party in Iran. All messages are conveyed through the Foreign Ministry or received by it, and there are communications between security agencies,” he said, adding that Tehran has not made any decision about negotiating with Washington as it has reservations about them.

The foreign minister also clarified to Al Jazeera that Tehran has not yet responded to the 15-point proposal that was sent by the US, “nor have we submitted any proposals or conditions.”

Reporting from Tehran, Al Jazeera’s Ali Hashem said that much of what Araghchi talked about was not new, but the significant update was the contact with Witkoff.

“The new piece of information is that he’s in touch directly with Witkoff and that there are some security discussions going on,” he said.

Last week, a senior diplomatic source told Al Jazeera that Iran had received a 15-point plan from the US that was aimed at ending the war.

The plan included proposals ranging from calls on Iran to commit to never acquiring a nuclear weapon to limiting its missile stockpile in both range and quantity.

Still, the Iranian foreign minister reiterated that Iran will only accept an end to all attacks in the region rather than a ceasefire.