TEHRAN – Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei recently visited the Tehran Times, where he met with the newspaper’s Editor-in-Chief and CEO and gave a detailed interview to a correspondent.

Baghaei addressed several pressing matters, including Israeli and American threats against Iran, the role of American media in enabling U.S. government crimes, and relations with regional countries and allies.

Part of his remarks focused on Tehran-Beirut ties, which have come under repeated attack from Western and Israeli officials and media seeking to undermine the longstanding and cordial relations between the two nations. He noted that Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, will soon visit Lebanon and is scheduled to meet with senior officials.

Below is the full text of the interview, edited for clarity and conciseness:

What's the latest on the legal action being taken against Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iran? What's being done and how far has it progressed?

Iran’s efforts to seek justice for the military aggression by the Zionist regime and the United States are ongoing. The crime committed was massive, a clear violation of international law in every respect. There was absolutely no justification for the use of force against Iran or its nuclear facilities—which were under full IAEA supervision and safeguards. Legally, the situation is very clear: this was an unprovoked full-fledged act of aggression. It was a blatant crime of aggression as well.

We’re addressing this on multiple levels. The first step is documentation, which we started immediately. We’ve compiled extensive records and communications with the UN Secretary-General, the Security Council, and the Human Rights Council, among others. This wasn't just a breach of one law—it violated several principles: the UN Charter’s prohibition on the use of force, international humanitarian law, and more. Attacking residential areas and infrastructure constitutes war crimes, and we have documented it all thoroughly.

Domestically, our judiciary is handling legal and criminal proceedings. Internationally, the Presidency’s International Legal Affairs Department is pursuing the case. We continue to gather evidence—including statements from U.S. officials who openly boast about their role in the attack. All of this strengthens our case, and we are committed to moving forward seriously with both our judiciary and legal teams.

It recently came out that before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran, several American media outlets spread false stories about a Trump-Netanyahu rift in order to help deceive Iranians. Since these outlets essentially helped enable the attack, is Iran planning to take legal action against them internationally?

There’s no question the U.S. and Israel collaborated in planning and executing this crime. This is nothing new—they’ve done the same across the region, including in occupied Palestine. U.S. support for the Zionist regime is total: military, financial, political. Their claim of a staged disagreement is a deception, and a transparent one at that. We never doubted America’s priority is serving Israeli interests.

That certain media outlets have knowingly been taking part in Israeli-American disinformation campaigns is both professionally disgraceful and morally revolting. If there were a fair international body to hold them accountable, we would certainly pursue it. Unfortunately, in today’s world, many who enable or aid international crimes face no consequences. We know the pattern: many Western media outlets have abandoned journalism to serve U.S. or Israeli policy goals. We saw it again during the genocide in Gaza—outlets downplayed the crimes, avoided the word “genocide,” and blamed the victims.

Iraq’s Prime Minister recently mentioned he is trying to mediate between Iran and the U.S. How serious is this, and where do things stand?

Iraq is a friend and neighbor, and we have confidence in the goodwill of Iraqi officials to help promote regional peace and security. Over the past two years, many regional countries, including Iraq, have offered their good offices to reduce tensions. We welcome Iraq’s sincere efforts and believe regional nations share a common interest in stability. This shared concern serves as a solid foundation is a good foundation for building regional security from within.

Iraq has good relations with both sides and has tried its best to reduce tensions. We appreciate Iraq’s role and its officials’ efforts.

Israel and some Western media are pushing a heavy campaign about Iran’s missile program. What’s their real goal here?

The Zionist regime is always looking for excuses to fuel tension. Remember Netanyahu’s claims since the 1990s that Iran was about to get nuclear weapons? A complete lie, repeated so often some started believing it. They’re using the same playbook now with missiles.

In Israel’s view, any capability that allows regional countries to defend themselves is a “threat.” They want the region defenceless. They’ve attacked seven countries in the past year, occupy territory in two, and possess the only nuclear arsenal in West Asia—supplied by the West. Hyping Iran’s missile program is a diversion. Our missiles are for defense—to protect Iran and contribute to regional deterrence and stability. This is just another excuse Israel is using, the same way it used the nuclear issue before. Iran is determined and resolved in defending its national security and interests against any malicious move.

It’s important that Western media, who know Israel’s history of using such narratives to create instability, expose this instead of amplifying it. They shouldn’t let these lies shape public opinion.

There was a public back-and-forth between the foreign ministers of Iran and Lebanon a few weeks ago. There are now reports that the Lebanese foreign minister is delaying acceptance of Iran’s new ambassador. Can you confirm?

Our Foreign Minister’s responses to his Lebanese counterpart have always been respectful and professional and focused on Iran’s commitment to strong bilateral ties. Relations with Lebanon matter greatly to us—we share a long friendship. We’ve always said Lebanon’s affairs are for the Lebanese to decide, and we respect its sovereignty and unity. We’re deeply concerned about Lebanon’s suffering, worsened by its proximity to an aggressive, occupying regime.

On bilateral matters, our embassy in Beirut is very active. With the current ambassador’s term coming to an end, our new ambassador has been introduced, and the acceptance process is already finalized, and the new ambassador will be dispatched soon.

Lebanon’s new ambassador also recently arrived in Tehran and had a meeting with the Foreign Minister to present the copy of his Letters of Credence last Wednesday. 

We plan for an official meeting between the two ministers, which will take place quite soon.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi recently signed a three-year roadmap with Russia during his visit to Moscow. What does it involve?

Our relationship with Russia is strong, longstanding, and based on mutual respect and shared interests. The key framework is the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement that entered into force recently, covering areas from the economy and trade to culture, defense, and health cooperation.

This new roadmap between our foreign ministries focuses on deepening diplomatic consultations over the next three years, which will help advance all areas of cooperation. We’ve had similar arrangements before. It also includes better coordination in multilateral forums like the UN, BRICS, and the Eurasian Economic Union, and on issues like Caspian Sea resources. The goal is more structured and regular coordination at all levels.

Israel recently recognized Somaliland. Iran and several regional countries condemned it—even though Somalia’s government has taken many anti-Iran stances in the past few years. Why did Iran condemn it, and are you planning further action?

Somalia is an independent sovereign State and must be treated as such. Its internal conflicts since the 1990s were made worse by foreign interference. Our consistent position is that differences within Somalia should be resolved through dialogue, not exploited by outsiders.

Israel’s move was widely rejected—by regional states, the African Union, the Arab League, the OIC, and even the EU. It threatens regional stability, especially in the Red Sea, where Israel’s presence only brings insecurity.

We condemned it based on principle. Yes, Somalia took unilateral steps against us years ago, and we are not pleased with some of its recent positions. But that doesn’t change our stance on what’s right for the region and the Islamic world. Expressing our position is the first step. We expect Islamic countries to consult within the OIC and other forums on how to counter this imposed challenge.

In August, Australia expelled Iran’s ambassador, claiming Iran was behind antisemitic attacks there—with no evidence. Australian police later denied any such attacks occurred. Then, after a recent ISIS attack on Jews in Australia, Israel immediately blamed Iran, and Australia stayed silent. What’s your take?

Australia’s decision was unjustified and irresponsible. To damage diplomatic relations based on senseless allegations, without presenting a single piece of evidence, is just absurd and reckless. As you mentioned, the local police later confirmed there was no truth to the claims.

A responsible government would correct such a mistake. Sadly, in the recent attack, the same baseless accusation was repeated by Israeli media and again proven false. We regret Australia’s decision and expect them to repair the damage.

Also, the international community should be more alert. There needs to be a united stance against the Zionist regime’s constant lies, so public opinion isn’t so easily manipulated.