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This picture supplied Thursday Feb. 19, 2026 by the Iranian navy and dated Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2025, reveals navy ships conducting operations throughout a be a part of drill by Iranian and Russian forces within the Indian Ocean.
Masoud Nazari Mehrabi/AP/Iran’s Military
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Masoud Nazari Mehrabi/AP/Iran’s Military
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran held annual navy drills with Russia on Thursday as a second American plane service drew nearer to the Center East, with each the US and Iran signaling they’re ready for warfare if talks on Tehran’s nuclear program fizzle out.
President Donald Trump mentioned Thursday he believes 10 to fifteen days is “sufficient time” for Iran to achieve a deal. However the talks have been deadlocked for years, and Iran has refused to debate wider U.S. and Israeli calls for that it reduce its missile program and sever ties to armed teams. Oblique talks held in latest weeks made little seen progress, and one or either side may very well be shopping for time for ultimate warfare preparations.
Iran’s theocracy is extra susceptible than ever following 12 days of Israeli and U.S. strikes on its nuclear websites and navy final yr, in addition to mass protests in January that had been violently suppressed.
In a letter to the U.N. Safety Council on Thursday, Amir Saeid Iravani, the Iranian ambassador to the U.N., mentioned that whereas Iran doesn’t search “stress or warfare and won’t provoke a warfare,” any U.S. aggression will likely be responded to “decisively and proportionately.”
“In such circumstances, all bases, services, and belongings of the hostile power within the area would represent professional targets within the context of Iran’s defensive response,” Iravani mentioned.
Earlier this week, Iran carried out a drill that concerned live-fire within the Strait of Hormuz, the slim opening of the Persian Gulf via which a fifth of the world’s traded oil passes.
Tensions are additionally rising inside Iran, as mourners maintain ceremonies honoring slain protesters 40 days after their killing by safety forces. Some gatherings have seen anti-government chants regardless of threats from authorities.
Trump once more threatens Iran
The actions of further American warships and airplanes, with the usGerald R. Ford plane service close to the mouth of the Mediterranean Sea, do not assure a U.S. strike on Iran — however they bolster Trump’s potential to hold out one ought to he select to take action.
He has up to now held off on placing Iran after setting pink strains over the killing of peaceable protesters and mass executions, whereas reengaging in nuclear talks that had been disrupted by the warfare in June.
Iran has agreed to attract up a written proposal to deal with U.S. considerations raised throughout this week’s oblique nuclear talks in Geneva, in accordance with a senior U.S. official who was not licensed to remark publicly and spoke on the situation of anonymity.
The official mentioned high nationwide safety officers gathered Wednesday to debate Iran, and had been briefed that the “full forces” wanted to hold out potential navy motion are anticipated to be in place by mid-March. The official didn’t present a timeline for when Iran is anticipated to ship its written response.
“It is confirmed to be, through the years, not straightforward to make a significant cope with Iran, and we now have to make a significant deal. In any other case, dangerous issues occur,” Trump mentioned Thursday.
With the U.S. navy presence within the area mounting, one senior regional authorities official mentioned he has careworn to Iranian officers in personal conversations that Trump has confirmed that his rhetoric needs to be taken at face worth and that he is critical about his menace to hold out a strike if Iran does not supply enough concessions.
The official, who spoke on the situation of anonymity to debate delicate diplomatic conversations, mentioned he has suggested the Iranians to look to how Trump has handled different worldwide points and draw classes on the way it ought to transfer ahead.
The official added that he is made to case to the Trump administration it may draw concessions from Iran within the near-term if it focuses on nuclear points and leaves the push on Tehran to reduce its ballistic missile program and help for proxy group for later.
The official additionally mentioned that Trump ordering a restricted strike geared toward pressuring Iran may backfire and result in Supreme Chief Ali Khamenei withdrawing Iran from the talks.
On this picture supplied by Sepahnews of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard on Feb. 16, 2026, reveals troops standing at consideration in the course of the guard’s drill within the Persian Gulf on Monday, Feb. 16, 2026.
AP/Sepahnews
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AP/Sepahnews
Rising worldwide concern
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk urged his nation’s residents to right away go away Iran as “inside a couple of, a dozen, or perhaps a few dozen hours, the opportunity of evacuation will likely be out of the query.” He didn’t elaborate, and the Polish Embassy in Tehran didn’t seem like drawing down its workers.
The German navy mentioned that it had moved “a mid-two digit variety of non-mission important personnel” out of a base in northern Iraq due to the present scenario within the area and according to its companions’ actions. It mentioned that some troops stay to assist preserve the multinational camp working in Irbil, the place they prepare Iraqi forces.
“This week, one other 50 U.S. fight plane — F-35s, F-22s, and F-16s — had been ordered to the area, supplementing the tons of deployed to bases within the Arab Gulf states,” the New York-based Soufan Middle suppose tank wrote. “The deployments reinforce Trump’s menace — restated on a virtually each day foundation — to proceed with a serious air and missile marketing campaign on the regime if talks fail.”
Iran holds drill with Russia
Iranian forces and Russian sailors carried out the annual drills within the Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean geared toward “upgrading operational coordination in addition to trade of navy experiences,” Iran’s state-run IRNA information company reported.
Footage launched by Iran confirmed members of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard’s naval particular forces board a vessel within the train. These forces are believed to have been used up to now to grab vessels in key worldwide waterways.
Iran additionally issued a rocket-fire warning to pilots within the area, suggesting it deliberate to launch anti-ship missiles within the train.
In the meantime, monitoring information confirmed the Ford off the coast of Morocco within the Atlantic Ocean noon Wednesday, that means the service may transit via Gibraltar and doubtlessly station within the japanese Mediterranean with its supporting guided-missile destroyers.
It will possible take greater than every week for the Ford to be off the coast of Iran.
Netanyahu warns Iran
Israel is making its personal preparations for doable Iranian missile strikes in response to any U.S. motion.
“We’re ready for any state of affairs,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mentioned Thursday, including that if Iran assaults Israel, “they are going to expertise a response they can’t even think about.”
Netanyahu, who met with Trump final week, has lengthy pushed for harder U.S. motion in opposition to Iran and says any deal shouldn’t solely finish its nuclear program however curb its missile arsenal and power it to chop ties with militant teams like Hamas and Hezbollah.
Iran has mentioned the present talks ought to solely concentrate on its nuclear program, and that it hasn’t been enriching uranium for the reason that U.S. and Israeli strikes final summer time. Trump mentioned on the time that the strikes had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear websites, however the precise injury is unknown as Tehran has barred worldwide inspectors.
Iran has at all times insisted its nuclear program is peaceable. The U.S. and others suspect it’s geared toward finally growing weapons. Israel is broadly believed to have nuclear weapons however has neither confirmed nor denied that.
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