Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tuesday he had told the country’s foreign minister to “continue fair and equal negotiations” with the United States after weeks of escalating tensions with the Trump administration. It was the first clear signal from Iran that it might take part in the talks, which are due to take place later this week.

The decision followed “requests from friendly governments in the region to respond to the United States President’s proposal for negotiations,” Pezeshkian said in a social media post. “I have instructed my foreign minister, provided there is an appropriate environment – free of threats and unreasonable expectations – to continue fair and equitable negotiations, guided by the principles of dignity, prudence and expediency.”

“I would like to see a deal on a deal,” President Trump said Monday. “Right now we’re talking to them, we’re talking to Iran, and if we could work something out, that would be great. And if we can’t, bad things would probably happen.”

Mr Trump has repeatedly threatened Iran with the possibility of another military strike as what he calls an “armada” of US warships heads for the Persian Gulf. He initially said The US could attack if Iran kills protesters amid its brutal crackdown on anti-government demonstrations that rocked the country in early January. He threatened the same measure last week, but said an attack could be launched if Iran refuses to negotiate a new deal over its nuclear program.

Senior US envoy Steve Witkoff is traveling to the region and Gulf countries, including Turkey and Qatar, are working to arrange talks for later this week. The White House has not confirmed that Witkoff will attend the talks with Iranian officials. Foreign ministers from Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have also been invited to participate in the talks, if they take place, the Associated Press reported Tuesday, citing an unnamed regional official.

Iranian protester tells CBS News that Mr Trump should ‘keep his word’

“Our biggest fear is that if they (the Iranian government) stay in power, they want to take revenge, because people have crossed their red line by taking to the streets, shouting ‘death to Khamenei and the Islamic Republic,'” Zahra, who took part in the protests that peaked on January 8 and 9, told CBS News on Friday.

Her name has been changed to protect her identity.

She said that the people of Iran will support the American intervention to topple the regime led by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“People who have nothing to do with the regime want them gone at any cost. They want Khamenei to be either removed or arrested or whatever. But they want the Islamic regime to disappear,” Zahra said. “Every one of them, from the so-called hard-liners — the circle closest to Khamenei — to those who were known as reformists … we want them all gone, because they are the system. They worked together and are complicit in this.”

Zahra said during protests in Iran, “we saw President Trump’s tweets on satellite TV. We read when he said, ‘Help is coming.’ People believed him. People trusted him a lot. And people took to the streets.”

She asked Mr Trump to “keep his word”.

“We tried all the options and it was all peaceful,” Zahra said. “People were unarmed and they were shot at in large crowds. So what I see is that these people did everything they could for a better future. And now there’s an understanding among them that we can’t do it alone.”