TOP STORIES
UK to Proscribe State-Backed Groups Such as Iran’s Revolutionary Guard | Guardian
Ministers will draw up new laws to ban state-backed groups such as Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the face of growing “complex” threats from foreign powers, Yvette Cooper said on Monday. . . . Cooper told MPs the charges have come against a “backdrop of rising numbers of Iran-linked operations on UK soil where there have been repeated warnings by ministers, the police and our security and intelligence agencies.”
Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei Doubts Success of Nuclear Talks with US | Reuters
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei voiced doubts on Tuesday over whether nuclear talks with the United States will lead to an agreement, Mehr news reported, as Tehran reviews a proposal to hold a fifth round of negotiations. “I don't think nuclear talks with the U.S. will be bring results. I don’t know,” Khamenei said during a speech in remembrance of Iran's late President Ebrahim Raisi.
US-Iran Talks Stumble over Nuclear Enrichment | The National
Talks between the US and Iran over Tehran's nuclear programme are stumbling over disagreements on uranium enrichment, according to two senior Iranian officials. İran has “not accepted” an invitation put forward by mediator Oman for a fifth round of talks due to take place in Rome this Friday, one official said, after the US negotiator Steve Witkoff said enrichment would not be allowed under any deal.
UANI IN THE NEWS
As experts note, Khamenei's tone has certainly changed. Jason Brodsky, director of United Against Nuclear Iran, writes: "In April, the ayatollah was slightly more positive, saying: 'We should be neither too optimistic nor too pessimistic about this dialogue.'
NUCLEAR DIPLOMACY & NUCLEAR PROGRAM
Iran Says It Has Received Proposal for Next Round of Nuclear Talks with US | Iran International
I ran has received a proposal for the next round of indirect negotiations with the United States, deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Tuesday. “We have received a proposal regarding the next round of indirect talks between Iran and the US, and it is under review,” Gharibabadi, who serves as deputy for legal and international affairs, said in remarks published by the state media.
Iran's Khamenei Slams 'Outrageous' US Demands in Nuclear Talks | Reuters
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said U.S. demands that Tehran refrain from enriching uranium are "excessive and outrageous", state media reported, voicing doubts whether nuclear talks will lead to an agreement.
Iran's Pezeshkian Seeks Dialogue on Nuclear Program as US Negotiations Continue | Fox News
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian spoke over the weekend, reiterating Iran’s commitment to dialogue and desire for a civilian nuclear program. The Iranian leader addressed navy officials in Bandar Abbas, discussing the ongoing negotiations for a deal with the United States. "We are not seeking war, we favor negotiation and dialogue, but we are not afraid of threats either, and we will in no way retreat from our legal rights," Pezeshkian said.
Iran Says Nuclear Talks Will Fail If US Pushes for Zero Enrichment | Reuters
Nuclear talks between Iran and the United States “will lead nowhere” if Washington insists that Tehran drop its uranium enrichment activity to zero, Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takhtravanchi was quoted by state media on Monday as saying.
The Trump administration has entered advanced negotiations with the Islamic Republic of Iran, signaling a potential agreement that would see Tehran limit its uranium enrichment to below weapons-grade levels, permit enhanced IAEA inspections and accept phased reductions of its enriched stockpile. In exchange, Washington is reportedly prepared to lift a calibrated set of economic sanctions. These terms, nearly point for point, mirror the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) that President Donald Trump spent the better part of a decade condemning as a strategic capitulation.
How Trump Can Avoid Another Bad Iran Nuclear Deal | Jonathan Ruhe in the Dispatch
At this point, Iranian diplomats likely would love to run out the 60-day clock by letting the Americans debate themselves, haggling endlessly over minutiae, and possibly hammering out a framework for open-ended talks. Flouting Trump’s redlines and deadline would collapse U.S. credibility and pave the way for cascading U.S. concessions—just like those that produced the JCPOA by replacing Obama’s ultimatums with Khamenei’s over the 20 months following the 2013 JPOA interim deal. This dubious legacy compounds the consequences of Trump’s own decisions going forward. He faces a choice, no later than next month, of either following the predictably bad path of his predecessors or terminating desultory talks and making good on his threat to use military force to prevent a nuclear Iran.
SANCTIONS, SHIPPING, BUSINESS RISKS, & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
Greek Shipping Magnate Admits to Breach of US Sanctions Against Iran | Jewish Chronicle
A Greek shipping magnate whose tankers have been seized by US authorities for transporting Iranian oil has admitted breaching American sanctions during cross-examination at London’s High Court. Global shipping baron, George Gialozoglou, publicly confessed for the first time that he has engaged in sanction busting by repeatedly transporting banned Iranian gasoline across international waters, disguising it as Iraqi.
IRGC Paper Threatens Retaliation Against US, EU If Snapback Sanctions Return | Iran International
Iran will retaliate with costly and damaging measures against any attempt by Europe to activate the snapback mechanism and reimpose UN sanctions, a hardline Iranian newspaper affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards warned on Tuesday. In a scathing editorial, Javan daily criticized the threat of snapback — a mechanism in the 2015 nuclear deal that allows the return of UN sanctions — as a “European stick for blackmail” and warned of punitive and high-cost actions against the economies of the United States and Europe.
Iran Budget Chief Calls for Oil Revenues to Go into Sovereign Fund | Iran International
Iran’s oil revenues should be deposited into a national fund before being spent, the country’s budget chief said on Monday, urging greater transparency and fiscal discipline as the military's share of the revenue continues to rise. A third of Iran’s projected oil revenue for the year ending March 2026—worth $12.4bn—will go directly to the armed forces and military projects, three times more than last year. . . . In recent years, billions have been syphoned to the IRGC and the state broadcaster, functioning as main vehicles of Khamenei’s hard and soft power.
Iran's Collapsing Economy Caught in Trump’s Crosshairs | Newsweek
Iran's economy is buckling under renewed strain, its fate increasingly tethered to news from Washington. As nuclear talks continue under President Donald Trump, whose "maximum pressure" sanctions campaign continues to shape Iran's economic reality, volatility has surged across financial markets while the power grid stutters. Unresolved structural problems—and the looming threat of renewed conflict—compound the uncertainty.
PROTESTS AND HUMAN RIGHTS
Iranian Teen Detained for Social Media Activity | IranWire
Security forces of the Islamic Republic have arrested a 16-year-old Baluch teenager from Iran’s Sistan and Baluchistan province and transferred him to an undisclosed location. According to the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights, Mani Dahani was detained on Sunday evening during a raid by security agents on the village of Gank in the Sib and Soran district. When Dahani's family sought information about his arrest, authorities claimed that it was related to his social media activity and the "publication of certain images."
Iranian Appeals Court Defies Supreme Court, Upholds Lawyer's Sentence | IranWire
An appeals court in central Iran has upheld the conviction of lawyer Behnam Nezadi, defying a Supreme Court order that had called for a retrial. The 8th Branch of the Markazi Province Appeals Court reaffirmed its earlier verdict, sentencing Nezadi to four months in prison and barring him from legal practice for one year on charges of "propaganda against the Islamic Republic."
MILITARY/INTELLIGENCE MATTERS & PROXY WARS
Iran Says Air Defense Capabilities Have Multiplied as Country Rebuilds | Iran International
Iran’s top military commander has announced a sharp increase in the country’s air defense capabilities, including a fivefold boost in detection and tracking systems. “The country’s air defense readiness—especially in detection, identification, and elimination of aerial threats—has advanced significantly compared to last year,” Major General Mohammad Bagheri, the chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces, was quoted as saying on Monday by IRGC-Tasnim News Agency.
CONGRESS & IRAN
Senior House Republicans Question Harvard over Iran Connections | Jewish Insider
A group of top House Republicans wrote to Harvard University on Monday, questioning the school about alleged work on research funded by the Iranian government, as well as members of the Chinese government. The letter accuses Harvard researchers of working with Chinese academics on research funded by the Iranian National Science Foundation, an entity chartered by the Iranian government and ultimately controlled by the Iranian supreme leader.
RUSSIA, UKRAINE, & IRAN
Iran, Russia Deepen Ties amid Nuclear Talks with the US | Jerusalem Post
Iran has continued its outreach to Russia and other countries as it waits for the next round of indirect talks with the US. . . . At the Tehran Dialogue Forum (TDF), Araqchi reaffirmed “the determination of Iran and Russia to reinforce bilateral relations,” IRNA noted. Yurevich focused on “continued consultations at all levels” and praised the forum. The reports on the meeting were slim, but Iran clearly wants to highlight Russia ties.
Putin Welcomes Progress in US-Iran Talks During Trump Phone Call | Reuters
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed progress in talks between the US and Iran on Tehran’s nuclear program during a conversation with US President Donald Trump today, and offered Russia’s help, says Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov.
EUROPE & IRAN
Ministers to Get Powers to Ban Iranian Revolutionary Guards | Telegraph
Ministers are to get anti-terror-style powers to proscribe the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) under plans to tackle security threats by hostile state intelligence agencies. Anyone helping or benefiting from a banned state intelligence agency such as the IRGC would face up to 14 years in jail under the proposals drawn up by Jonathan Hall, KC, the Government’s independent reviewer of terrorism legislation.
Iran and Britain Summon Envoys Over Alleged Spying in UK | BBC
Britain and Iran have summoned each other’s envoys after three Iranians were charged with spying in the UK. Three Iranian men were arrested on 3 May and appeared in court in London on Saturday on charges of spying for the Islamic republic. Iran's IRNA news agency said the British charge d'affaire[s] was asked on Sunday to give an explanation for what it said was "unjustified" and "politically motivated" arrests. The UK Foreign Office then responded on Monday by summoning Tehran's ambassador to the UK.
EU, UK Voice Alarm Over Iran’s Nuclear Expansion, Policy of 'Hostage Diplomacy' | Iran International
The European Union and the United Kingdom on Monday voiced deep concern over Iran’s expanding nuclear program and its continued imprisonment of foreign nationals, according to a joint statement issued after high-level talks. “We continue to be deeply concerned by the dangerous expansion of Iran’s nuclear program, alongside its behavior in the region and on European soil,” the statement read. The EU and UK also condemned what they described as Iran’s use of “hostage diplomacy,” calling for an immediate end to the detention of foreign nationals under politically motivated charges. "We condemn Iran’s unjust detention of foreign nationals and call on Iran to halt its practice of hostage diplomacy," read the statement.
ISRAEL & IRAN
Israeli authorities announce that they have arrested two Israeli citizens suspected of conducting intelligence-gathering missions for Iran in the community of Kfar Ahim, where Defense Minister Israel Katz resides, according to a joint statement from Israel Police and the Shin Bet. . . . This is the third such incident of Israelis allegedly spying for Iran announced in recent days and joins a spate of similar plots uncovered over the past year.
Araghchi Reveals Iran’s Relief That Israel Wasn’t Behind Raisi’s Helicopter Crash | Times of Israel
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi revealed Monday the relief in Tehran when it confirmed that Israel was not behind the helicopter crash last year that killed then-Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi and several members of his entourage. During an interview with the local Channel 3 during events marking the first anniversary of Raisi’s death, Araghchi said, “Thank God, it has become clear that the martyrdom of martyr Raisi was not the work of Israel.”
AFGHANISTAN & IRAN
Former Afghan Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani Visits Iran for Talks | Afghanistan International
Sources confirmed to Afghanistan International that Salahuddin Rabbani, Afghanistan’s former Foreign Minister and leader of a faction of the Jamiat-e Islami party, arrived in Tehran on Monday, 19 May. Rabbani is scheduled to meet with officials from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) during his visit, sources said.