US President Donald Trump has given mixed signals about his plans for confronting Iran [Getty]
Regional powers have continued efforts to de-escalate tensions between the United States and Iran, with US President Donald Trump signalling the possibility of a diplomatic solution that would avert war.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday at the premiere of a documentary about his wife, Melania, Trump said he hoped he could avoid military action.
“We have a group headed out to a place called Iran, and hopefully we won’t have to use it,” Trump said.
The president’s remarks have added impetus to diplomatic efforts by neighbouring countries, including Turkey, which is hosting high-level talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Friday.
The office of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said on Friday that the Turkish leader spoke to his Iranian counterpart, Masoud Pezeshkian, by phone. Erdogan said Ankara is willing to help “de-escalate” tensions between Tehran and Washington, the office said.
Erdogan “emphasised that Turkey is ready to assume a facilitating role between Iran and the United States to de-escalate the tensions and resolve the issues,” it said, noting the pair had discussed the “escalating military tensions in the region”.
At the same time, Saudi Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman is in Washington, where he met with top US officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, and top Trump aide and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.
Riyadh is widely believed to be looking to avoid a military escalation, fearing a wider fallout from a US attack on Iran.
Following the talks, Prince Khalid said in a post on X that he discussed “efforts to advance regional and global peace and stability” with the American officials.
Iran prepares
Meanwhile, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) is set to hold live-fire exercises in the Straits of Hormuz on 1 and 2 February, Press TV reported on Thursday.
The Strait of Hormuz is an important waterway for global energy shipping, with fears raised during previous escalations that Tehran could shut it off.
The drills come as Iran, which has attempted to avert US strikes through diplomacy with regional powers, insists it is “ready” to respond to any attack from American or Israeli forces.
Elsewhere, Iraqi militias have held “martyrdom marches” with supporters wearing white shrouds and pledging to fight in the event of an attack on Iran.
The rallies have seen attendees also waving Iranian flags and holding placards bearing images of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and deceased Hezbollah chief Sayyid Hasan Nasrallah.
The rallies have been organised by Kataib Hezbollah, Harakat al-Nujaba and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada – three of Iraq’s most prominent Iran-aligned militia groups.
Security officials in Baghdad and Basra told The New Arab’s Arabic-language sister site, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that the events were merely social gatherings meant to “foster unity and support, posing no security threat to Iraq or abroad”. However, images circulated by the factions showed registration drives for people willing to bear arms.
One image shared by Kataib Hezbollah showed dozens of people at its headquarters in Baghdad, with a caption describing the group as “martyrdom-seeking volunteers to defend the people of Islam”.