Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated that Western countries cannot impose their will on Iran through sanctions, according to Fars news agency.

He remarked, “Western countries should know, and it is surprising that they don't already know this, that sanctions are a failed tool and they cannot impose their will on Iran by sanctions, both on the nuclear issue and on other issues.”

Araghchi also urged Western nations to change their approach, emphasizing that Tehran is prepared to engage in dialogue based on mutual respect rather than threats and pressure.

The Iranian foreign minister said on Saturday that Tehran is open to diplomacy to resolve disputes but will not tolerate "threats and pressure," state media reported. 

"Iran continues on its own path with strength, although we have always been open to talks to resolve disputes... but dialogue should be based on mutual respect, not on threats and pressure," Araghchi said, according to the official news agency IRNA.

This comes shortly after Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned, on Tuesday, the ambassadors of the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, and Germany following allegations from their countries that Tehran supplied ballistic missiles to Russia.

At the time, Araghchi slammed these allegations, labeling them as false.

The diplomatic move comes after a joint statement by Germany, the UK, and France on Tuesday, where the three countries threatened Iran with new sanctions, including the potential cancellation of bilateral air service agreements.

The big picture

The Islamic Republic has consistently denied accusations of providing military support to Russia for the war in Ukraine. Numerous allegations have been raised against Iran, with Washington claiming that Tehran was supplying Moscow with drones for use in the war. However, no evidence was put forward to back any of the claims.

The spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, Nasser Kanaani reiterated last Sunday that Iran advocates for a political solution to resolve the disputes between Russia and Ukraine and bring an end to the military conflict.

Kanaani slammed the repeated allegations of ballistic missile transfers to Russia as politically driven and entirely unfounded, emphasizing that military cooperation between Tehran and Moscow has "a history much older than the start of the Ukrainian war."

The spokesperson explained that "these cooperations are within the framework of bilateral agreements and based on international norms and laws and have nothing to do with the Ukraine crisis."

Read more: Iran vows reciprocal measures against UK, France, Germany sanctions