Two critical events have changed everything since 2025, and the Islamic Republic appears dedicated to living in an alternate reality in which those events have not transpired.

Just as the talks got underway in Geneva, Iranian state media reported that parts of the strategic Strait of Hormuz will close while Iran’s Revolutionary Guard conducts military drills.

Iran state media on Tuesday said the country’s military fired live missiles toward the Strait of Hormuz, just as Tehran and the U.S. held its second round of talks about the Middle Eastern nation’s nuclear program.

The U.S. has said the White House wants to ink a deal with Iran but has alluded to military action if no agreement is signed.

Iran’s theocracy has faced down protests and U.S. threats in the past, and the crackdown showed the iron grip it holds over the country. This week, authorities organized pro-government rallies with hundreds of thousands of people to mark the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are also responsible for Russia-Ukraine talks nearby, so they may be shuttling between venues.

Iran has been joined by Russia and China in deploying naval vessels for a joint live-fire exercise in the Strait of Hormuz, heightening regional tensions even as negotiators from Washington and Tehran met for diplomatic talks aimed at averting a military confrontation.

In the aftermath of another wave of antigovernment unrest, Iran is gripped by a mood of collective grief and uncertainty about the future.

Pezeshkian said that Iran has announced repeatedly that it does not seek nuclear weapons based on the policies outlined and a religious decree issued by the country's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, adding that the country is ready for any verification in that regard.