Iran will accept nuclear curbs if sanctions lifted, Araghchi says

Iran will accept limits on its nuclear programme including restrictions to uranium enrichment if international sanctions are lifted, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said.

In an opinion piece for The Guardian newspaper in Britain on Sunday, he wrote that Iran “is ready to forge a realistic and lasting bargain that entails ironclad oversight and curbs on enrichment in exchange for the termination of sanctions”.

His apparent softening of Tehran's stance on enrichment came as the country's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei bemoaned Iran's oil production levels and called for the diversification of its export markets.

“Our oil production methods are old methods; the tools are old … We are behind many of the oil-rich regions of the world,” Mr Khamenei said in a meeting with cabinet members.

“Oil production in the country – with the importance it has in the economy, which is obvious – is low.”

He called for “more dynamism” in oil exports, stressing the need for multiple and diverse customers, with China still the dominant buyer.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has called for the diversification of the country's export markets. EPA

Iran's oil industry has been under crippling western sanctions since the US withdrew from a 2015 deal with world powers, in which Iran had agreed to curbs on its nuclear programme in return for sanctions relief.

US President Donald Trump has pursued a “maximum pressure” strategy against Iran to weaken its economy since he returned to office for a second term this year.

Relations with Europe have also deteriorated over Iran's nuclear programme. Last month, Britain, France and Germany set off the so-called “snapback” mechanism under the 2015 deal to reimpose UN sanctions.

Iran also halted co-operation with the UN's International Atomic Energy Energy this year following a 12-day war with Israel, during which the US and Israel struck key Iranian nuclear plants.

The conflict disrupted talks between Tehran and Washington aimed at reaching a new deal.

“Failing to seize on this fleeting window of opportunity may have consequences destructive for the region and beyond on a whole new level,” Mr Araghchi wrote in his opinion piece, referring to negotiations with Britain, France and Germany to avoid the reimposition of UN sanctions.

Under the “snapback” mechanism, the so-called E3 countries gave Iran a month to negotiate before the sanctions are reimposed.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas met Mr Araghchi on Thursday to seek a “negotiated solution” to the standoff.

Mr Araghchi said in The Guardian that Tehran remains open to diplomacy and “there is still time – and a dire need – for an honest conversation”.

He accused Europe of “enabling the excesses of Washington” as a means to “provide them with a seat at the table on other issues”.

The minister called such a strategy a “reckless course of action” and a “grave miscalculation that is bound to backfire”.

Western countries accuse Iran of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons – something Tehran denies, defending its right to what it insists is a civilian nuclear programme.

Iran has previously insisted its right to enrich uranium is “unshakeable”.

Trump v Khan

2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US

2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks

2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit

2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”

2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency

July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”

Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.

Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”

The Lowdown

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In numbers

- Number of children under five will fall from 681 million in 2017 to 401m in 2100

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- an average of 2.1 children per woman is required to sustain population growth

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MATCH INFO

Syria v Australia
2018 World Cup qualifying: Asia fourth round play-off first leg
Venue: Hang Jebat Stadium (Malacca, Malayisa)
Kick-off: Thursday, 4.30pm (UAE)
Watch: beIN Sports HD

* Second leg in Australia scheduled for October 10

Classification of skills

A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.

A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.

The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.

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4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing 117

5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari 116

6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing 67

7. Sergio Perez, Force India 56

8. Esteban Ocon, Force India 45

9. Carlos Sainz Jr, Toro Rosso 35

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Know your Camel lingo

The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home

Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless

Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers

Majahim - chocolate-brown camels that can grow to weigh two tonnes. They were only valued for milk until camel pageantry took off in the 1990s

Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival

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Children who witnessed blood bath want to help others

Aged just 11, Khulood Al Najjar’s daughter, Nora, bravely attempted to fight off Philip Spence. Her finger was injured when she put her hand in between the claw hammer and her mother’s head.

As a vital witness, she was forced to relive the ordeal by police who needed to identify the attacker and ensure he was found guilty.

Now aged 16, Nora has decided she wants to dedicate her career to helping other victims of crime.

“It was very horrible for her. She saw her mum, dying, just next to her eyes. But now she just wants to go forward,” said Khulood, speaking about how her eldest daughter was dealing with the trauma of the incident five years ago. “She is saying, 'mama, I want to be a lawyer, I want to help people achieve justice'.”

Khulood’s youngest daughter, Fatima, was seven at the time of the attack and attempted to help paramedics responding to the incident.

“Now she wants to be a maxillofacial doctor,” Khulood said. “She said to me ‘it is because a maxillofacial doctor returned your face, mama’. Now she wants to help people see themselves in the mirror again.”

Khulood’s son, Saeed, was nine in 2014 and slept through the attack. While he did not witness the trauma, this made it more difficult for him to understand what had happened. He has ambitions to become an engineer.

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