Iran-US tensions highlights: Nuclear deal ‘within reach’, says Iranian foreign minister ahead of US talks

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: Security forces deployed tear gas against students inside the lobby of the Vanak campus of Khajeh Nasir University of Technology in Tehran, according to the university’s newsletter.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: Retired General Jack Keane said Monday that the US and Israel are at a pivotal moment in dealing with Iran, arguing that negotiations would prolong the survival of a government he described as weakened and fragile.

Speaking to Fox News, the former US Army vice chief of staff said Washington should avoid actions that might “extend the life” of Iran’s leadership, claiming current conditions present a rare chance to set the stage for potential regime collapse.

Keane also accused Tehran of deceiving the US for decades and warned that renewed talks would offer Iranian authorities a “lifeline.”

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: India's foreign ministry on Monday urged its citizens to leave Iran, against a backdrop of fears of a possible US strike on Tehran.

Earlier, Serbia also issued a similar advisory urging citizens to leave Iran, citing the "deteriorating security situation." Separately, Sweden's Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard noted on X her "strong appeal addressed to Swedish citizens who are in Iran to leave".

Other than these, Australia and Poland has also advised caution for its citizens in Iran.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: University students have the right to protest but everyone must "understand the red lines", the Iranian government's spokeswoman said Tuesday in the first official reaction to renewed protests on campuses since the weekend.

"Sanctities and the flag are two examples of these red lines that we must protect and not cross or deviate from, even at the height of anger," Fatemeh Mohajerani said. (AFP)

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: On fresh 'leave Iran by available means' advisory issued by India amid US strike fears, National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah says, "I want to tell the children of Jammu and Kashmir to leave immediately. Otherwise, tomorrow when the airspace is closed, their parents and families will raise concerns and panic. It is better to leave before that situation arises, because later there may be no one to evacuate them. Since the advisory has already been issued, they should pack up and return home."

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: Amid the ongoing protests across several universities in Iran, the country said that students have the right to protest but they must know ‘red lines’, reported news agency AFP.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: The death toll of the crash of an Iranian army's Air Force helicopter has risen to four, according to the state media.

On Tuesday, the helicopter crashed into a fruit market in Iran's central province of Isfahan. Among those who died in the crash are pilot, co-pilot, and two fruit vendors on the ground, reported IRNA news agency.

It added that crash may have happened due to "technical malfunction".

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: A helicopter belonging to the Iranian army's Air Force crashed on Tuesday in the central province of Isfahan, killing at least two people, state media reported.

"Unfortunately, the pilot and co-pilot were killed in the incident," state TV said without specifying the cause of the crash. (AFP)

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: The student protests in Iran continued on Monday as students of universities in Iranian cities such as Tehran, Isfahan and Mashhad announced creation of Lion and Sun associations and adopted the pre-1979 Lion and Sun emblem, reported Iran International.

The report said said that statements circulated by students at the University of Tehran, Amirkabir University of Technology and Isfahan University of Technology announced the creation of Lion and Sun associations.

They also called for secular governance, territorial integrity and free elections, and expressed support for exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: US President Donald Trump is “curiou” about why Iranians “haven't capitulated” so far under pressure, said US special envoy Steve Witkoff in an interview with Fox News over the weekend.

"Why, under this sort of pressure, with the amount of sea power, naval power that we have over there, why they haven't come to us and said, 'We profess that we don't want to be — we don't want a weapon. So, here's what we're prepared to do.' And yet, it's hard to sort of get them to that place," Witkoff had said.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: US President Donald Trump is growing frustrated with the limits of military leverage against Iran as described by his aides, reported CBS citing multiple sources familiar with the matter.

The report added that Trump has been told that an operation on Iran would be unlike the one in Venezuela and could lead to a wider conflict in the Middle East.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: United States secretary of war Pete Hegseth said on Monday (local time) that "Iran should make a deal. Iran has an opportunity to to make a deal. That is the outcome the President would prefer. Our job is to provide options...everything is on the table. It's the president decision."

“Iran would be wise to make a good deal,” he said.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: The foreign policy chief of the European Union has asked for “diplomatic solution” on Iran, reported news agency AFP. This coms as Iran and the US remain engaged on talks, with two rounds done and the next round scheduled for February 26, Thursday, in Geneva.

Iran-US tensions LIVE: United States President Donald Trump's State of the Union address will mention the US strikes on Iran's nuclear sites conducted last year during the 12-day Israel-Iran war, among other things.

The address comes as the US has deployed two aircraft carriers in the Middle East amid tensions with Iran.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: The All India Medical Students Association-Foreign Students' Wing has urged the government to ask the Indian Embassy in Iran to urgently coordinate with Iranian universities and authorities for postponement of all scheduled examinations for Indian students studying there in view of the security situation and the advisories to Indian nationals to leave the country.

In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Association said that in the prevailing tense geopolitical and security environment, it is neither safe nor feasible for students to remain in Iran merely to appear in examinations.

The Association requested the government "to direct the Embassy in Iran to urgently coordinate with Iranian universities and authorities to postpone all scheduled examinations for Indian students".

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: As tensions between US and Iran soar ahead of talks scheduled for later this week, the US military has amped up its military presence in the Middle East and has assembled a vast array of forces in the region, which is likely the largest US deployment there since the 2003 Iraq invasion, reported Bloomberg.

The military equipment stationed by US in the middle east include two aircraft carriers, fighter jets and refueling tankers.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi told CBS on Sunday that there is a “good chance” that the US and Iran could reach a diplomatic solution over the nuclear issue. He said he expected to meet US envoy Steve Witkoff in Geneva for nuclear talks and added that a proposed deal would be ready to share within days. He said that Iran is still working on the proposal.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: The United States has ordered nonessential diplomats and their family members at the US Embassy in Beirut to leave Lebanon, the State Department said Monday, as tensions over Iran rise with the threat of a potentially imminent military strike.

The department said in an updated travel alert for US citizens in Lebanon that it "ordered the departure of non-emergency US government personnel and family members of government personnel due to the security situation in Beirut."

The alert, which was formally released several hours after word began to circulate about the move, said US personnel remaining in Lebanon would have their in-country travel restricted. (AP)

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: India asked all its citizens currently in Iran to leave to country by any available means of transport in a fresh advisory issued on Monday, February 23.

According to the Indian Embassy in Tehran, the fresh advisory was issued “in view of the evolving situation in Iran” and is in continuation to the similar advisory issued earlier this year on January 5, 2026.

India has asked all Indian nations currently in Iran, including students, pilgrims, business persons and tourists, to leave the country by available means of transport, including commercial flights. Read more.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: Gold rose for a fifth day, as uncertainty over US trade policy and prolonged tensions around Iran drove investors toward safer assets.

Bullion was near $5,240 an ounce in early trading, having gained more than 7% over the previous four sessions. Markets are in a state of confusion after US President Donald Trump said he would increase a global import levy to 15% after the Supreme Court ruled against his so-called reciprocal tariffs. (Bloomberg)

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: Israel's opposition leader Yair Lapid on Monday backed military action in Iran and called for the rule of “ayatollahs” to be overthrown.

“I will go wherever necessary, from CNN to the British parliament, and tell them: You know that I am the head of the opposition, you know that Netanyahu and I are rivals, but Iran must be attacked with full force, the rule of the ayatollahs must be overthrown,” he said on Monday, reported Iran International.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: Thousands of people in Iran reportedly got an alert on their phones on Monday that said, "The US President is a man of action. Wait and see," in Persian, from an anonymous number.

This escalation, reported by Iran International news agency citing state media comes as US President Donald Trump has upped rhetorical attacks on the regime in Tehran, while also amassing armadas in the Middle East for a possible military strike. Read more.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: At a conference in Geneva, Iran's deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi warned of a wider conflict in case of aggression and warned the coumtries against supporting actions that could lead to escalation in the region.

“We call upon all nations committed to peace and justice to take meaningful steps to prevent further escalation. The consequences of any renewed aggression wouldn’t remain confined to one country and responsibility would rest with those who initiate or support such actions,” Iran International quoted Gharibabadi as saying at the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: In a lengthy post on Truth Social, Trump also said that he would rather want to strike a deal with Iran but in case that does not happen, the Middle Eastern country could see a “very bad day”.

“Everything that has been written about a potential War with Iran has been written incorrectly, and purposefully so. I am the one that makes the decision, I would rather have a Deal than not but, if we don’t make a Deal, it will be a very bad day for that Country and, very sadly, its people, because they are great and wonderful, and something like this should never have happened to them,” Trump wrote.

Iran-US tensions LIVE updates: US President Donald Trump called the reports about General Daniel Caine being apprehensive about striking Iran “100% inaccurate” and added that the Army official thinks that a war against Iran could be “easily won”.

“Numerous stories from the Fake News Media have been circulating stating that General Daniel Caine, sometimes referred to as Razin, is against us going to War with Iran. The story does not attribute this vast wealth of knowledge to anyone, and is 100% incorrect. General Caine, like all of us, would like not to see War but, if a decision is made on going against Iran at a Military level, it is his opinion that it will be something easily won. He knows Iran well in that he was in charge of Midnight Hammer, the attack on the Iranian Nuclear Development,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.