US President Donald Trump; Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian
Iranian media reported on Sunday that the United States “made no concrete concessions” in its latest response to Tehran’s proposed agenda for talks aimed at ending the war that began with joint US-Israeli strikes on February 28 and has been stalled since April 28.Mehr news agency reported, “The United States, while not making any concrete concessions, wants to obtain concessions that it failed to obtain during the war. This will lead to a stalemate in the negotiations.”According to Fars news agency, Washington presented a list of five conditions, including:
- Tehran will keep only one
Nuclear site operational - The Islamic Republic will transfer its highly enriched uranium reserves to the US
- US will not release “even 25%” of Iran’s frozen assets abroad
- No compensation will be given for the losses suffered by Iran during the war
- Hostilities on all fronts must end at the start of talks
In its resolution, Iran had called for an end to the war on all fronts, including Israel’s military campaign in Lebanon, as well as an end to the US naval blockade of Iranian ports from April 13. Lebanon was drawn into the conflict after Hezbollah, the terrorist group based in the country and supported by Tehran, entered the war following the assassination of Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei on the first day of hostilities.Meanwhile, according to the Iranian Foreign Ministry during a press conference last week, Iran also demanded the removal of all US sanctions and the release of its assets frozen abroad under long-standing US sanctions.According to Fars, the resolution emphasizes that Tehran will continue to control the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global energy corridor that it has largely closed off since the beginning of the war. About 20% of the world’s oil supply passes through the Strait of Hormuz.Meanwhile, Iranian armed forces spokesman Abolfazl Shekarchi warned US President Donald Trump against resuming attacks on the Asian nation.“The desperate US president must know that if his threats are implemented, his country’s resources and military will be forced to face unprecedented, aggressive, surprising and turbulent scenarios,” Shekarchi said, according to state television.Similarly, Deputy Speaker of Parliament Hamidreza Hajibabai warned against targeting Iranian oil infrastructure.“If Iranian oil is damaged, Iran will take measures that will prevent the United States and the world from accessing oil from the region for a long time,” Hajibabai was quoted as saying by ISNA news agency.(with AFP input)