The United States continues to bolster its military presence off the coast of Iran. The American president announced new deployments, while asserting that Iran was ready to engage in negotiations—statements immediately downplayed by Tehran. "Time is running out" before a possible attack, retorted Donald Trump on Wednesday, January 28, urging Iran to reach an agreement. Iran says it is "ready" to respond to Trump's threats while reiterating its openness to a "fair and equitable" nuclear agreement.

Donald Trump has urged Iran to reach an agreement, stating on his Truth Social platform that "time is running out" before a US attack on Tehran. "Hopefully Iran will quickly agree to sit down at the table and negotiate a fair and just deal - NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS," the US president wrote, threatening an attack "far worse" than the US strikes last June against Iranian nuclear sites.

"A massive armada is heading towards Iran. It is moving quickly, with power, enthusiasm, and determination. This fleet, led by the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, is larger than the one sent to Venezuela. As with Venezuela, it is ready to accomplish its mission quickly, with violence if necessary," Donald Trump emphasized.

A US official estimated the total number of American ships in the Middle East at 10, including the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group, which also includes three destroyers and F-35C stealth fighter jets. Six other US warships are also deployed in the region: three destroyers and three littoral combat ships. This armada is roughly the same size as the one deployed in the Caribbean before the US operation earlier this year to abduct former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and bring him to trial in New York.

Iran will "respond like never before" in the event of aggression

Iran will "respond like never before" in the event of US aggression, the Iranian mission to the UN told X. "The last time the United States mistakenly became involved in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, they wasted over $7 trillion and lost over 7,000 American lives. Iran is ready for dialogue, based on respect and mutual interests. BUT IF PROVOKE, IT WILL DEFEND ITSELF AND REACT LIKE NEVER BEFORE!" the message said.

Tehran has "its finger on the trigger"

Iran's foreign minister warned the United States that Tehran had "its finger on the trigger." "Our brave armed forces are ready—with their finger on the trigger—to respond immediately and forcefully to ANY aggression against our beloved land, air, and sea," Seyed Abbas Araghchi wrote on the social network X.

"At the same time, Iran has always welcomed a mutually beneficial, just and equitable NUCLEAR AGREEMENT - on an equal footing, and free from coercion, threats and intimidation - that guarantees Iran's rights to PEACEFUL nuclear technology and ensures the TOTAL absence of NUCLEAR WEAPONS," he added.

France supports the inclusion of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on the European list of terrorist organizations.

"I remain convinced that a regime which can only maintain itself in power by resorting to pure violence and terror against its own population has its days numbered," said German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.

“This could be a matter of weeks,” he added. “This regime has no legitimacy to govern” Iran, he declared, echoing Italy’s desire to add the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to the European Union’s list of terrorist organizations. Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani will make this proposal to his EU counterparts on Thursday. Friedrich Merz said he regretted “that there are still one or two countries in the European Union that are not ready” for this designation.

For its part, France "supports the inclusion of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on the European list of terrorist organizations," the Élysée Palace announced on Wednesday.

"Together with our European partners, we will take sanctions tomorrow in Brussels against those responsible for these abuses. They will be barred from entering European territory, and their assets will be frozen," the French Foreign Minister assured on X, denouncing "the unbearable repression of the peaceful uprising of the Iranian people."

China warns against any "military adventurism"

China's representative to the UN, Fu Cong, warned the Security Council against any "military adventurism" in Iran.

“China hopes that the United States and other relevant parties will take more steps to promote peace and stability in the Middle East and refrain from escalating tensions and adding fuel to the fire,” he said. Fu Cong also described Iran as an “independent and sovereign” state whose “affairs should be decided independently by the Iranian people themselves.”

Tehran rules out negotiations as long as Washington continues its "threats".

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had already responded the previous day to US President Donald Trump's statements, asserting that Iran refused any negotiations conducted under the threat of military intervention. "Conducting diplomacy while making military threats can be neither effective nor useful," Araghchi declared on television, adding that in order to negotiate, the Americans would have to "cease the threats and excessive demands."

He did, however, specify that several countries were currently seeking to act as intermediaries and were in contact with both Tehran and Washington to facilitate potential discussions between the two countries. In this context, the Egyptian Foreign Minister spoke with his Iranian counterpart on Tuesday, January 27, before meeting with US envoy Steve Witkoff.

For his part, Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian spoke with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, stating that Iran was ready to engage in a process aimed at avoiding war, provided that it was in accordance with international rules and Iranian national interests, summarizes our correspondent in Tehran, Siavosh Ghazi.