The atmosphere of optimism spread by US President Donald Trump regarding ending the war with Iran clashed with the position of Tehran, which on Tuesday stuck to its conditions, denied the existence of negotiations, and said that the war “will not end with the military track or with increased sanctions.”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said, in response to a question from the official IRNA agency about Tehran’s assessment of Trump’s recent positions: “The American president did not need to hear from the people of his country that they are against war with Iran, and they do not want their country to continually enter the war in support of the Zionist entity. He should have realized much earlier that he had not achieved, and would not achieve, any of his goals in the war with Iran.”
He added: “It will not be long until Trump understands that he took the wrong path regarding sanctions and economic pressure as well,” adding that “the only way is to use the language of respect, employ diplomacy, and work with Iran’s demands and conditions that were included in the two-day plan and are still on the table.”
Araqchi described reports of a possible meeting between Rezaei and Vance as “baseless media speculation and fabrications,” and said that such a meeting “was not planned, and is not on the agenda.”
The Tasnim Agency, affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, denied the same reports and quoted a senior Iranian security official as saying that Tehran would not negotiate “unless the American side takes a practical step within the framework of the seven conditions.”
Tehran once again denied planning any meeting between the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, and US Vice President J.D. Vance. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, at the conclusion of the G7 foreign ministers’ meeting in Paris, that “the economic campaign is so destructive that there is no need, at the present time, for major combat operations.” He warned that the US military is “prepared to respond” if Iran crosses “some red lines.”
Upon his arrival in Paris on Monday, Rubio said that Iran “would like to reach an agreement,” but its conditions were “ridiculous,” adding: “In the end, you have to eat.”
A G7 diplomat told Reuters that some of Trump's senior advisers support imposing severe economic pressure on Iran, including Rubio, newly appointed White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, and Treasury Secretary Scott Besent. He added that Vance, who held the war on Iran responsible for Republican losses in the midterm elections, prefers to reach an agreement, but Trump currently believes that a sustainable agreement is not possible.
“status quo”
Tehran proposes, through mediators, to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days of reaching an agreement, on the condition that Washington agrees to four demands: ending the war on all fronts, releasing frozen Iranian funds, lifting sanctions, and stopping the US naval blockade of Iranian ports.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ismail Baghaei described the “two-day proposal” as “the pinnacle of good faith.” He said that removing enriched uranium from Iran is “not on the table in any way,” and this is one of the main American demands.
Through Doha, the two parties exchanged amendments to a framework document for a possible agreement, but disagreement still exists regarding the arrangement for implementing commitments, especially the inclusion of the nuclear program in the initial negotiations.
On Monday, Iranian media denied reports of an agreement to reopen the Strait in exchange for the release of $8 billion in Iranian assets, describing them as “false.”
Trump said, on Monday, after consultations with the Qatari Prime Minister for 45 minutes in the White House, that Iran is “effectively finished militarily,” and that new strikes against it are “highly unlikely.”
He told reporters: “We are only maintaining the status quo, and in fact we are doing so at the request of its neighboring countries.” He added: “I hope we can conclude an agreement with them.”
Reuters quoted Trump as saying that he would postpone new strikes on Iran for the time being, in response to calls from countries in the region, including a call from the Qatari Prime Minister during White House talks. He was also quoted as saying that he would continue the naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump added that military action “does not seem absolutely necessary” at this stage, but that American forces are “fully equipped with the best equipment ever made.” “We don’t think there will be any reason to use it,” he said, noting the arrival of another aircraft carrier “loaded to the brim with new equipment.”
He wrote on the Truth Social platform: “We see positive momentum towards ending this conflict, and we will ensure that the interests of the United States are protected at all times.” He added, referring to his talks with the Qatari Prime Minister: “We agreed that Iran cannot obtain a nuclear weapon, and this is non-negotiable!”
He told reporters that the Iranians “understand this and accept it... They do not admit that they accept it, but they accept it 100 percent.” He described Iran as a “failed state” with inflation reaching 301 percent. He said that its military manufacturing capacity had “decreased by about 85 percent,” although it was still producing “limited numbers” of missiles and drones.
He was asked why he did not announce the end of the war, and he said that Washington must make sure that Iran’s neighbors “will not be harmed,” adding: “We want a long-term solution, not a short-term solution.” He said: “They are talking to us, and they are speaking very politely... I cannot guarantee anything, but if we have to return, we are ready.”
Trump acknowledged that the war, which raised fuel prices, was one of the reasons for the Republicans' loss in the midterm elections. Axios saw his statements as the “most advanced” approach toward declaring an end to the war since February.
Doha expressed cautious optimism. Director of the Media and Communications Department at the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ibrahim Al-Hashimi, said on Tuesday that the mediation between Washington and Tehran had gained “remarkable momentum” that reached its peak in the White House discussions, and that there was “positive talk from both sides about a diplomatic solution,” but it did not set a date for an agreement. She warned that the approach of winter, with the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz, would exacerbate the global energy crisis.
“Drop your papers”
In Tehran, Rezaei wrote on the “X” platform in English: “The war on Iran has already destroyed the American government. But Washington is floundering like a desperate gambler. Drop your papers. Stop making up fake news about fake conversations. Stop denying the new order in West Asia. “It is time to submit to the seven conditions that Iran has repeatedly set.”
Rezaei said, on Tuesday, in statements reported by Reuters, that “there are currently no negotiations” between Tehran and Washington. He explained that Iran had asked the United States for a “clear and frank” response to its conditions, and had not received any response yet, but he suggested that Washington would respond at a later time.
His advisor, Mustafa Najafi, wrote that despite the “extensive, intense and unprecedented” efforts of the mediators, “no plan, specific timetable, or session” for the negotiations has yet been decided. He believed that Trump might be “buying time” to complete his military readiness and reduce oil prices “before starting another round of war.”
Iranian government spokeswoman Fatima Mohajerani said on Tuesday: “We are not in a situation of neither war nor peace. The atmosphere is completely warlike.” She added: “The atmosphere we are in is both war and peace, and we are in the middle of the war.” She described the economic siege as “one of the most violent types of siege,” and said that the government seeks to “manage matters” and move “towards an honorable atmosphere and sustainable peace.”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said, on Monday, that Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei had ordered an end to the situation of “no war, no peace.”
Iranian First Vice President Mohammad Reza Arif said that “the path of confrontation with the enemy will continue,” whether peace is achieved or not, and that Iran “does not seek war, but it defends itself well.”
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Iran’s chief negotiator with the United States, wrote on Monday evening that the Israelis are seeking “day and night” to drag America into a “quagmire” from which no American president is able to emerge.
Member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee in Parliament, Ali Khodarian, said that Iran had prepared “unprecedented military surprises” for the enemy, and that the government was rapidly increasing its strategic food reserves. A member of the Presidency of Parliament, Ruhollah Mutafakir Azad, said that the war will bring surprises to the enemy, if he commits a “new mistake,” that “may not have occurred to him.”
Gholamreza Mesbahi Moghadam, a member of the Expediency Discernment Council, told IRNA that the Iranians “chose the path of resistance” in the face of economic pressures.
On Tuesday, state television showed scenes of a tour of the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces and Commander of Operations, Ali Abdullah, and the Commander of the Missile Unit in the Revolutionary Guard, Majeed Mousavi, in an underground “strategic missile site,” which Iranian media described as a new “missile city.” Abdullah said that Iran will “inevitably” destroy Israel, and that “surprises will appear successively in the next war.”
Ghalibaf wrote, in a message after the site was revealed, that the site conveys a clear message to enemies: “Do not make mistakes in your calculations.” He added: “If you make a mistake, Iran will not hesitate to launch a rapid defense beyond imagination, and this time the Iranian armed forces will determine the geography of war.”
In the Strait of Hormuz, the naval unit of the Revolutionary Guard announced on Tuesday that three oil tankers caught fire after they took an “unpermitted route.” She said that one of them “collided with a sea mine,” and that the second was “under the protection of American army fighters” when she “was involved in an accident.” He pointed to the injury of a third tanker, saying that it “collided with a sea mine” east of the Strait of Hormuz, causing it to catch fire, according to the Iranian account.
