By Micah Jonah, February 19, 2026
Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov, has warned that any new United States military strike on Iran would have “serious consequences”, urging all sides to exercise restraint as tensions mount over Tehran’s nuclear programme.
Lavrov made the remarks in an interview with Saudi broadcaster Al-Arabiya, published on Wednesday, shortly after US and Iranian negotiators held indirect talks in Geneva aimed at easing growing tensions between Washington and Tehran.
According to the Russian foreign minister, previous strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities posed real risks of triggering a nuclear incident. He cautioned that further escalation would amount to “playing with fire” and could destabilise the wider Middle East region.
“There have already been strikes on Iran on nuclear sites under the control of the International Atomic Energy Agency,” Lavrov said, noting that such actions carried grave dangers.
Lavrov added that several Arab nations, including Gulf monarchies, were signalling opposition
