Russia's Lavrov meets Iran's Araqchi, renews offer to help solve conflict
A ministry statement said Lavrov, in his talks in Rio de Janeiro with Abbas Araqchi, issued a new denunciation of Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran last month, "including the bombing of nuclear energy infrastructure under safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency."
Lavrov, the statement said, stressed that all issues surrounding Iran's nuclear programme had to be resolved through diplomacy.
"Moscow expressed its readiness to offer its assistance in finding mutually acceptable solutions, including the corresponding initiatives put forward earlier by the Russian president," it said.
Araqchi held talks in Moscow in the middle of the 12 days of conflict last month.
Iran denies it has any intention of developing nuclear weapons. Russia, which has a strategic partnership with Iran, though without a mutual defence provision, says Tehran has the right to a peaceful nuclear energy programme.
Russia has said it is ready to act as a mediator in the crisis pitting Iran against Israel and the United States and has offered to store Iranian uranium.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
40 minutes ago
- Fox News
Green energy zealots hand America's enemies the ultimate weapon
When radical environmental groups denounce the United States' use of fossil fuels, they often romanticize countries attempting to wean themselves from coal, oil and natural gas as models for us to follow. But the reality is that these resources remain vital to America's national and economic security, and the only ones more eager than green groups to end our country's energy development are geopolitical rivals like Russia and China. For a world power like the United States, policies that restrict the production and use of our God-given natural resources would hand a strategic and economic advantage to authoritarian regimes. Unfortunately, environmental zealots don't seem to understand this inherent problem with their agenda. Or worse, they simply don't care. Take, for example, Greenpeace, which was recently ordered to pay $667 million to the developer of the Dakota Access Pipeline following its campaign of deception and destruction. What Greenpeace and other extremist groups don't grasp is that their efforts to stop oil and natural gas development would weaken the United States, embolden rogue nations, hurt our economy and have very little, if any, impact on the environment. Making the United States more dependent on renewable energy would make the U.S. electricity grid less reliable and threaten the nation's economy. Spain is a pertinent example. In April, the country bragged that for the first time, it was running on 100% renewable energy. Later that month, a grid failure created a nationwide blackout that risked lives and cost the country nearly a half-billion dollars. Generating electricity solely through renewables makes electric grids more prone to collapse, and requires incredibly expensive upgrades to energy infrastructure that leads to higher electricity prices for consumers. The International Energy Agency found that for every 10% increase in the portion of electricity generated by renewables, costs go up by more than 4 cents per kilowatt hour. As a result, countries like Germany pay more than 2.5 times the average electricity rate than the United States, and over four times higher than China. When countries like China or Russia can generate electricity more cheaply than their democratic rivals, they gain an important economic advantage. China's coal consumption reached record highs last year, and its buildout of new coal power plants reached the highest level of construction in the last 10 years. Russia is the world's second-largest exporter of natural gas and holds natural gas reserves that rival the U.S. When it comes to the environment, these countries are not extracting or using fossil fuels with the same care as American companies. In fact, the largest carbon emitter in the world by a long shot is China. In 2020, China's emissions exceeded those of all other developed nations combined. As China and Russia continue to develop their fossil fuel resources, it will be essential that the United States do the same. Groups like Greenpeace may continue their efforts to derail American fossil fuel projects, but policymakers should recognize that this agenda would have little impact on the environment and a lasting and damaging impact on both U.S. national security and economic competitiveness. To protect the environment and preserve our democratic values, the United States must pursue an energy policy rooted in realism, not ideology. While environmental activism has a place in shaping a sustainable future, radical efforts to dismantle fossil fuel development ignore a critical truth – energy security is national security. Abandoning domestic oil and gas production would not reduce global emissions, it would only hand a strategic advantage to those who pollute more, care less and gain power when democracies self-sabotage. Groups like Greenpeace may cloak themselves in the language of environmental justice, but their actions serve to undermine the very stability and environmental stewardship they claim to champion. America must remain energy-independent, competitive and strong because the world's most polluting regimes won't sacrifice their energy dominance no matter what we decide to do.
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Ukraine Turns to Fishing Nets to Catch Russian Drones
They are fishing nets, but they are not catching fish. They are catching Russian drones. The nets are strung over roads leading to hot spots in Ukraine's eastern front, above military checkpoints and artillery positions. They are sewn in cities far from the front, or shipped from Nordic ports, donated by fishermen who no longer need them. Their purpose is to thwart the Russian drones that now swarm the skies above the front lines and swoop in on practically anything that moves, whether it is an armored vehicle racing to resupply troops or a soldier hiding in a tree line. With their dense mesh, the nets can tangle drone propellers and immobilize the weapons. They are a simple but effective countermeasure against drones that are often too fast to shoot down and can fly deep behind the front to strike logistical routes once out of reach. Russia has also increasingly used drones connected by fiber-optic cables rather than ones that rely on electronic signals. The cables make them immune to jamming, a standard method used to counter drones on the battlefield. The nets have become one of the few remaining ways to catch drones before they hit. 'Military engineers noticed that even an ordinary fishing net could stop or damage an enemy drone,' Lt. Col. Maksym Kravchuk, the head of communications for the Ukrainian Army's engineering forces, recently told Ukrainian news media. He added that nets were now being installed 'along the entire front line, from east to south.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Trump Keeps Foreign Countries on Edge as Tariff Deadline Nears
President Trump is set to rekindle economic pressure on America's trading partners this week, as a deadline for making trade deals elapses and the administration begins notifying countries of the tariffs they'll face on exports to the United States. For 90 days, the administration has been trying to reach trade pacts with dozens of countries in an attempt to lower economic barriers to U.S. exports. In April, the president imposed stiff global tariffs on nearly every trading partner but paused most of those levies until July 9 to try and win concessions. So far, the United States has reached only two preliminary trade deals, with Britain and with Vietnam, which are scant on details and leave much to be worked out. More such limited trade deals could be announced in the coming days, including an initial trade framework with India. Countries that have so far agreed to trade deals, even preliminary handshake agreements, have qualified for lower tariff rates than what Mr. Trump threatened in April. Other countries that have not reached agreements are expected to face sharply higher tariffs, although the president and his advisers have recently implied that the tariffs may not go into effect until Aug. 1, rather than on July 9. Still, with tariffs threatening to strain diplomatic relations and bring some global commerce to a halt, a delay of a few weeks may not to do much to soothe many foreign governments. It could also further unsettle financial markets, which revolted when Mr. Trump initially announced his global tariffs, a meltdown that prompted Mr. Trump to institute the 90-day delay. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
