Iranian, European officials agree to stay engaged amid Israel-Iran conflict

Iranian and European officials held their first face-to-face talks in Geneva on Friday since the recent escalation in the Israel-Iran conflict, stressing the importance of continued diplomatic engagement.

The meeting, held among Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, his counterparts from Britain, France and Germany (E3), as well as the European Union's (EU) top diplomat, lasted about three and a half hours.

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Araghchi reiterated that Iran's nuclear program is purely peaceful in nature and remains fully under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

Iran supports continued consultations with the E3 and the EU, and is prepared to make further efforts to promote peace in the near future, Araghchi added.

After the meeting, British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said that Britain remains committed to ongoing discussions and negotiations with Iran, and urged Tehran to continue its dialogue with the United States.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot noted that France had invited Iran to consider re-engaging in talks with all relevant parties, including the United States. He added that France hopes to see the process move forward.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said the participants departed the meeting with the understanding that Iran is, in principle, prepared to continue discussions on all key issues.

EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said that the parties agreed to broaden the scope of talks beyond the nuclear issue and to maintain openness in their dialogue.

Fabian Zuleeg, chief executive of the Brussels-based European Policy Centre, believes that given the current highly volatile situation, it comes as no surprise that this round of mediation has failed to achieve substantive results.

"The Europeans will try to work towards deescalation, towards a diplomatic solution, but it looks rather unlikely at the moment. Of course there would not always be open fighting, but I think we are going to see volatile situation for a long time to come," said Zuleeg.

Iranian, European officials agree to stay engaged amid Israel-Iran conflict

Venezuela's acting president Delcy Rodriguez said on Sunday that the country is at a critical stage and must achieve national unity, emphasizing that maintaining internal cohesion is of utmost importance.

In a televised address, Rodriguez called on the public to continue trusting the government under the current highly complex political circumstances.

Her statement comes in the wake of a January 3 military operation conducted by the United States, during which Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife were taken into custody and flown out of the country.

The operation resulted in at least 100 fatalities.

Rodriguez, who was sworn in as acting president two days later on January 5, framed her appeal for unity against this backdrop of external intervention.

Meanwhile, Venezuelan Minister of Communication and Information Freddy Nanez denounced the U.S. actions as a "war crime of the 21st century" when speaking at an international cultural event on Sunday.

Nanez condemned not only the January 3 airstrikes but also the associated cyber and electromagnetic attacks.

He accused the United States of violating international law through the forced removal of President Maduro and his wife, while attacks on civilian infrastructure, including medical facilities, represent a flagrant breach of humanitarian norms.

He reiterated that the stigmatization and military attacks against Venezuela are driven by economic interests, particularly the desire to control its abundant natural resources.

Venezuelan acting president calls for national unity amid complex situation