JERUSALEM/TEHRAN/MUSCAT, Feb. 10 (Xinhua) -- Iran has warned on Tuesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to the United States is an attempt to undermine the newly-started nuclear talks between Iran and the United States.
Netanyahu departed for Washington on Tuesday to meet U.S. President Donald Trump, in a bid to press him to take a harder line on Iran's ballistic missile capabilities in upcoming negotiations.
This is the Israeli prime minister's seventh meeting with Trump since his return to office, including one in Jerusalem in October 2025, after Trump announced a ceasefire in Gaza.
"On this trip, we will discuss a range of issues: Gaza, the region, but of course first and foremost the negotiations with Iran," Netanyahu told journalists at the airport.
He said he will present to Trump Israel's views regarding "the principles of the negotiations, the important principles," which are "important not only for Israel, but for anyone in the world who wants peace and security in the Middle East."
Netanyahu's office recently said the prime minister will press the view that any negotiations with Iran must address its ballistic missile program and regional activities, not only its nuclear-related issues.
In response to Netanyahu's visit to Washington, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said at a weekly press conference in Tehran on Tuesday that Israel has been the main cause of insecurity and security problems in the region.
Israel has been the root cause of Iran's "peaceful" nuclear program turning into a "fabricated crisis," Baghaei said, adding that Israel is opposed to any diplomatic process that would restore peace and calm in the region.
The U.S. officials should not let others decide for their country's foreign policy, Baghaei said. It is up to the United States whether to act independently of the "destructive" pressures, lobbies and attempts aimed at exerting influence, he said.
Baghaei said Iran had proved its seriousness and goodwill in the talks and is in a hurry to lift the "illegal" sanctions imposed on the country.
Pointing to the brief encounter between the Iranian and U.S. delegations on Friday, he said, "There is an understanding to continue the diplomatic process, which is important."
Meanwhile, Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, arrived in the Sultanate of Oman on Tuesday, the Oman News Agency reported.
According to an official statement by the Omani Royal Court, Sultan of Oman Haitham bin Tariq Al Said met with the visiting Iranian official, discussing the latest developments related to the Iranian-U.S. negotiations and ways to reach a balanced and fair agreement between the two sides.
The statement stressed the importance of returning to dialogue to resolve disputes peacefully, enhance mutual understanding, and promote regional and global peace.
Friday talks between Iran and the United States in the Omani capital Muscat came amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington in view of the latter's military buildup in the West Asia region.
Following the negotiations, Trump said the discussions were "very good" and that further negotiations were expected. Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Araghchi, in his remarks, said, "In general, I can say that it was a good start. However, the continuation of the process depends on the two sides' consultations in their capitals and their decisions about how to continue it." ■
