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Iran

October 11, 2026

Tehran 12:48 am

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In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian shake hands during a meeting in Turkmenbashi on Oct. 8, 2026.

Analysis

Putin offers to help end Iran war, but can Russia deliver?

As Washington and Tehran weigh their next moves, Moscow is seeking a diplomatic foothold in a war where influence may prove harder to convert into concrete results.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

US President Donald Trump speaks at the "Golden Age of American Innovation Summit" at the Institute of Peace in Washington, DC, on Oct. 8, 2026.

Trump offers Iran path to nuclear deal while keeping up military pressure

Iran has previously discussed compromises on enrichment.

GRAND ISLAND, NEBRASKA - OCTOBER 05: U.S. President Donald Trump wraps up an appearance at a campaign rally at Pinnacle Bank Expo Center on the Nebraska State Fairgrounds on October 05, 2026 in Grand Island, Nebraska. Trump is campaigning for incumbent U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE) and Gov. Jim Pillen ahead of the November midterm elections. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Analysis

Deal or war? Israel fears fallout from Trump’s next move on Iran

Israel is struggling to decipher the White House’s intentions toward Iran, given Washington's contradictions around launching a fresh military campaign.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

A Baluch Iranian man rides a bicycle in Zahedan, in the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan bordering Afghanistan on Dec. 18, 2025, during a media tour organized by the Iranian government.

Iran’s Sistan and Baluchistan province witnesses uptick in attacks

Iranian authorities accuse foreign-backed armed groups of being behind a string of deadly attacks in the southeast, amid concerns about the resumption of war with the United States.

Latest News

Trump says no Iran strikes before midterms amid ‘productive’ talks

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on Oct. 7, 2026 in Washington, DC.

Pezeshkian to meet Putin as Iran looks to Russia for support: What to know

Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian hold a meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Bishkek, on Sept. 1, 2026.

Meet Mehrdad Akhlaghi Ketabchi, Iran's defense minister nominee

An undated image of Mehrdad Akhlaghi Ketabchi.

Iran joins SCO drill as China resists direct intervention in US-Iran war

Kyrgyz servicemen take part in the "Eurasia-Antiterror 2023" joint military drills

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Benjamin Houghton

In Durham, reporting on China in the Middle East

Rahim Rahimov

In Baku, reporting on Middle East-Caucasus ties

Mehrnaz Samimi

In Washington, DC, reporting on Iranian culture

Why did Hariri go to Cairo before returning home to Lebanon?

To spare the Middle East another battleground, Cairo played a role in containing the crisis of the resignation of Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

Is Saudi crown prince winning or losing in the Middle East?

With Saad Hariri staying on as prime minister in Lebanon, the Saudi crown prince has suffered another setback in his efforts to counter Iran.

A money changer counts out U.S. dollars for a customer in Tehran's business district, Iran, January 20, 2016. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi/TIMA ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. - GF20000100973

Imprudent foreign financing could jeopardize Iran’s economy

Contrary to common wisdom, not all foreign financing, especially the type currently trickling into Iran, is good for state finances and the country’s economy.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani, Russia's Vladimir Putin and Turkey's Tayyip Erdogan meet in Sochi, Russia November 22, 2017. Sputnik/Mikhail Metzel/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC1A068CD8A0

Iranian media: Sochi summit step toward 'new Middle East'

Iranian media reported on the trilateral meeting between the presidents of Iran, Russia and Turkey in Sochi as a step toward a new Middle East.

Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson attends the 2017 Chatham House London Conference at the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel in London, Britain. October 23, 2017. REUTERS/Mary Turner - RC14EB158860

Why UK-US divide on Iranian nuclear deal matters

Rather than France or Germany, it is Britain that could prove essential in determining the fate of the nuclear deal with Iran.

Israeli forces are seen near a border fence between the Israeli-occupied side of the Golan Heights and Syria, November 4, 2017. REUTERS/Ammar Awad - RC19166D7D10

IDF prepares for 'new' Syria

Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman is asking for an increased budget for the Israel Defense Forces to prepare itself against new threats developing along its northern border with Syria.

Helga Maria Schmid (L), Secretary-General European External Action Service, Delegated Joint Commission Coordinator (EU), David Geer (2ndL), Head of the Sanctions Policy Division (EU), Seyed Abbas Araghchi (2ndR), Iran's Vice-Minister for Legal and International Affairs, Majid Takht-Ravanchi (R), Iran's Under-Secretary for European and American Affairs and senior diplomats from other six major powers meet in Vienna, on April 25, 2017 for a regular quarterly meeting to review adherence to their 2015 nuclear d

Iran, EU hold third round of high-level talks

The third round of comprehensive discussions between Iran and a high delegation of European Union representatives will take place in Iran.

A display featuring missiles and a portrait of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is seen at Baharestan Square in Tehran, Iran September 27, 2017. Picture taken September 27, 2017. Nazanin Tabatabaee Yazdi/TIMA via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC11BFED01E0

The wrong way to address Iran’s missile program

To address Iran’s ballistic missile program, the United States and Europe need to work toward a region-wide solution.

Khamenei adviser apologizes for cursing Rouhani VP

A shadowy adviser to Iran’s supreme leader entered the spotlight after a video of him attacking the first vice president went viral.

Saad al-Hariri, who announced his resignation as Lebanon's Prime Minister while on a visit to Saudi Arabia, is pictured at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, November 18, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier - RC12B497C730

Saudi Arabia seeks to turn back clock on Iran

The debacle surrounding the resignation of Lebanon’s prime minister amid growing Saudi hostility toward Iran suggests a coming showdown in the region.

Foreign ministers, Sergei Lavrov (front) of Russia, Mevlut Cavusoglu (2nd R) of Turkey, Mohammad Javad Zarif (R) of Iran, and members of the delegations attend a meeting in Moscow, Russia, December 20, 2016. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov - LR1ECCK0W9ZRG

Turkey, Iran, Russia: Trilateral distrust in Syria

Iran and Turkey are concerned that Russia might exploit them at some point to achieve its own goals in Syria.

Posters depicting Saad al-Hariri, who announced his resignation as Lebanon's prime minister from Saudi Arabia, is seen at airport high way in Beirut, Lebanon November 19, 2017. REUTERS/Jamal Saidi - RC119900A480

Can Lebanon handle truth about Hariri, Saudi Arabia?

Saad Hariri faces his own court of conscience; US-Iran relations revert to axis of evil days.