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FM Lavrov Urges U.S. to Abandon ‘Language of Ultimatums’ and Negotiate Peace With Iran

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Dmitry Belitsky / Moskva News Agency

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in a telephone conversation with his Iranian counterpart on Sunday that the United States should abandon "the language of ultimatums" and return to negotiations with Tehran.

"The Russian side expressed hope that the efforts undertaken by a number of states to de-escalate tensions around Iran will be successful," according to a readout of Lavrov's phone call with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

That, Lavrov added, "would be facilitated by the United States abandoning the language of ultimatums and returning the situation to a negotiating track."

His comments came after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened in an expletive-laden Truth Social post on Sunday to strike Iran's power plants and bridges if it did not reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz.

Lavrov and Araghchi also called on the U.S. to halt "illegal attacks on civilian infrastructure," such as the Bushehr nuclear power plant, where Russian staff have been working as technicians.

On Saturday, Russia's state nuclear agency Rosatom started evacuating its remaining employees at the Bushehr plant shortly after a U.S.-Israeli projectile hit near the facility.

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