Students at several universities across Iran have been holding protest gatherings for five consecutive days, chanting slogans against the government and in support of exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi.
President Donald Trump said in his State of the Union address that Iran is pursuing missile and nuclear weapons programs despite past US efforts to stop them.
Trump said the US is still negotiating with Tehran but said he has not heard “the secret words: ‘We will never have a nuclear weapon.'
"As president, I will make peace wherever I can, but I will never hesitate to confront threats to America wherever we must," Trump said.
“They’ve already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they’re working on missiles that could soon reach the United States," Trump said.
The US Treasury Department on Wednesday imposed new Iran-related sanctions on four individuals as well as several entities and tankers, a notice on the department’s website showed.
Saudi Arabia is increasing oil production and exports as part of a contingency plan in case any US strike on Iran disrupts Middle East supplies, Reuters reported, citing two sources familiar with the plan.
The plan involves raising output to boost exports but scaling back later to remain in line with OPEC+ quotas if no disruption occurs, the report said, citing the sources.
Saudi Arabia adopted a similar approach last year, lifting exports by about 0.5 million barrels per day and shipping more crude to overseas storage when the United States attacked Iranian nuclear sites.
The kingdom will dial back on the plan if no disruption happens and will produce less oil later to keep in line with its OPEC+ quotas, the report cited one of the sources as saying.
Three students at University of Art were detained in Tehran on Wednesday by security forces, according to a university-affiliated media outlet.
The outlet identified the students as Pouyan Jamili, Sina Ghanimati and Kiarash Najafzadeh.
Germany's Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Iran must commit in negotiations with the United States to end its support for armed groups including Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen.
Speaking at a press conference with Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot, Wadephul added that Germany has “a special responsibility for the security of the State of Israel.”
OPEC+ is considering an increase in oil output for April as tensions between the United States and Iran push crude prices higher, Reuters reported, citing sources familiar with the group’s discussions.
The move comes as fears grow that a possible US strike on Iran could disrupt oil flows from the Middle East. Reuters also reported that top producer Saudi Arabia has activated a contingency plan to boost output and exports in case conflict affects regional supplies.
Eight OPEC+ members are set to meet on March 1 to discuss production policy, the report said.
A video shared with Iran International shows a banner addressed to US President Donald Trump that reads in Persian, “You are a man of action, but each day of delay means dozens of executions.”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Wednesday he saw a positive outlook for negotiations with the United States as Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi left for Geneva for US talks on Thursday.
“We see a good outlook for the talks [with the US] and Mr. Araghchi will have a meeting in Geneva tomorrow. We have tried, under the guidance of the Supreme Leader, so that we can get out of this neither-war-nor-peace situation,” he said.
Esmail Kosari, a member of Iran’s parliament national security and foreign policy committee, said the United States should pull its naval forces out of the region.
“Americans must return their aircraft carriers and warships to their own territory,” he said, according to state media.
Kosari criticized what he called contradictory US statements on Iran’s nuclear program. “On the one hand they say Iran’s nuclear facilities were destroyed, and on the other they say Iran can reach its goal in a short time and must be stopped militarily,” he said, adding that such remarks were “nonsense.”
He said Iran remains prepared and warned that if the US takes military action, it would face a response.
Germany expects Iran to engage constructively in nuclear talks scheduled for Thursday in Geneva, Reuters cited a foreign office spokesperson as saying.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi left Tehran on Wednesday afternoon with a delegation for Geneva to take part in a third round of nuclear talks between Iran and the United States, state media reported.
Australia has directed the departure of dependents of Australian officials posted to Lebanon and Israel in response to what it described as a deteriorating security situation in the Middle East, the foreign ministry said.
The government has also offered voluntary departures to dependents of officials stationed in Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, the ministry added.
A group of schoolgirls at a girls’ school in Shiraz joined a growing wave of students across Iran singing a patriotic anthem: “Homeland, You Are My Being.” Similar performances have been reported at schools in multiple cities in recent days.
Ali Shamkhani, a veteran security figure and long-time adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader, has returned to a central role in shaping Tehran’s military and diplomatic strategy after surviving an Israeli strike last year, Reuters reported in a profile.
Reuters said Shamkhani, 70, was confirmed as secretary of Iran’s newly established Defence Council following the 2025 12-day war, placing him back at the core of security decision-making as tensions with the United States rise.
A former commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and ex-head of the Supreme National Security Council, Shamkhani has played roles in nuclear negotiations and regional diplomacy. In January, he warned on X that any US military action would be treated as the start of war and would draw what he called an “all out” response.
Reuters also noted that Shamkhani has been sanctioned by the United States over alleged links to networks moving sanctioned oil, allegations he has not publicly addressed.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will travel to Geneva later on Wednesday with a political delegation to take part in a third round of talks with the United States, state media reported.
