A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Tuesday morning that Tehran will not begin negotiations on its nuclear program until Washington accepts Iran's conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The official also warned that Iran is ready to respond forcefully to American strikes.
The official said the two countries remain far from an agreement to end the war and that Tehran will reject what it considers excessive US demands. The official added that Iran's response to any strikes would not be confined to the region. Mediators are working to close the gaps between the sides.
Qatar is one of the main intermediaries. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran is holding intensive consultations through mediators, including Qatar and Pakistan, Ynet reported on Monday. "If the U.S. accepts our conditions, the Strait of Hormuz will reopen and negotiations will resume," Araghchi said.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the talks center on a seven-point plan that Tehran submitted in September. Iran later scaled back the plan after US President Donald Trump rejected it that same month. Under Iran's proposal, the US would end its naval blockade of Iranian ports, Iran would reopen the shipping route through the strait, Washington would allow Iranian oil sales, and newly imposed sanctions would be lifted. Baghaei said nuclear talks could resume only after Tehran confirms that all of its conditions have been met. When asked whether Iran would agree to send its enriched uranium stockpile abroad, he said no.
A US official confirmed that American forces struck Iran's Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday night. The official said the strikes were limited and were not a return to major combat. According to the official, members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) fired a missile from the island toward an American aircraft, and US forces answered with a surface-to-air missile in self-defense.
