Iranian media say current negotiations are focused on halting fighting and reopening Strait of Hormuz traffic as Pezeshkian says talks with the US do not mean “surrender”
TEHRAN — Iran sent on Sunday its response to the latest US proposal for ending the war to the Pakistani mediators, Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran’s response to the latest US proposal for ending the war was sent to the Pakistani mediator today,” the agency said.
According to Iran’s proposal, the current phase of negotiations will focus exclusively on the cessation of hostilities in the region, a source familiar with the matter told IRNA, without giving any details about the content of the Iranian response.
Sources in both camps have told Reuters the latest peace efforts are aimed at a temporary memorandum of understanding to halt the war and allow traffic through the Strait of Hormuz while they discuss a fuller deal, which would have to address intractable disputes such as Iran’s nuclear programme.
‘Defending rights’
Iran has reiterated its firm stance on negotiations with the United States that any talks are a defence of national rights rather than a concession.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Sunday that talks with the US aim to defend Tehran’s rights, “not surrender.”
“If there is any talk of dialogue or negotiation, it does not mean surrender or backing down, but rather the goal is to secure the rights of the Iranian nation and powerfully defend national interests,” Pezeshkian said in a statement carried by IRNA.
Iran “will never bow before the enemy,” he vowed during a meeting of the task force for reconstruction of damage caused during the US-Israeli war.
Regional tensions have escalated since the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28, triggering retaliation from Tehran against Israel as well as US allies in the Gulf, along with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
A ceasefire took effect on April 8 through Pakistani mediation, but talks in Islamabad failed to produce a lasting agreement.
The truce was later extended by US President Donald Trump without a set deadline, giving way to diplomacy for a permanent solution to the war.
C.TRT World
