US President Donald Trump has threatened that Iran has “two or three days” to reach a deal to end the war or face renewed attacks.
An Iranian official says the US threat of a massive assault at any moment will be met “resolutely” and Iran is “prepared to confront any military aggression”.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian says “dialogue does not mean surrender”, and Tehran has entered talks with “dignity, authority, and the preservation of the nation’s rights”.
Trump had earlier said that he stopped his purported attack plan at the urging of Gulf Arab allies, which Iran has threatened with reciprocal attacks if the United States and Israel end a nearly six-week ceasefire.
Trump, who had indefinitely extended the truce and made clear he wants to exit a war that has proven to be a political liability, said he had prepared a new attack for Tuesday after Iran refused his outlines of a deal.
The leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates asked him “to hold off on our planned Military attack of the Islamic Republic of Iran, whichDonald Trump was scheduled for tomorrow, in that serious negotiations are now taking place,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
But Trump added he had instructed the US military to be “prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable Deal is not reached.”
Speaking later at a White House event, Trump said there had been a “very positive development” and that Arab allies said a deal was near that would leave Iran without nuclear weapons, which Tehran denies pursuing.
“There seems to be a very good chance that they can work something out. If we can do that without bombing the hell out of them, I’d be very happy,” Trump said.
Iran has repeatedly rebuffed Trump’s offers and has exerted control over the Strait of Hormuz, the vital waterway into the Gulf, sending global oil prices spiraling.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei confirmed exchanges with the United States through mediator Pakistan and said Tehran made clear its “concerns.”
The cleric-run state, whose supreme leader was killed in the initial strikes on February 28 but has proven resilient, is demanding the release of Iranian assets frozen abroad, the lifting of long-standing sanctions and reparations for the war.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, considered a moderate in a system increasingly dominated since the war by the hardline Revolutionary Guards, said that speaking with Washington “does not mean surrender” and that Iran would defend its “dignity” and rights.
Iran’s Fars news agency said Sunday that Washington had presented a five-point list, which included a demand for Iran to keep only one nuclear site in operation and transfer its stockpile of highly enriched uranium to the United States.
US authorities had refused to release “even 25 percent” of Iran’s frozen assets or pay any reparations, Fars said.
But Iran’s Tasnim news agency, citing an unnamed source close to the Iranian negotiating team, said the United States made one new step forward in the latest text by agreeing to waive oil sanctions while negotiations were underway. (AP)
