Iran’s security chief Mohsen Rezaei said Tuesday that Tehran is still waiting for a clear response from the United States to its seven conditions for peace talks, while dismissing speculation about negotiations with Washington. His remarks came as hopes for a diplomatic breakthrough in the US and Israeli regime’s war on Iran were fueled by US President Donald Trump, who allegedly said he saw “positive momentum” toward ending the conflict. Yet the Strait of Hormuz remains a flashpoint, with attacks on vessels continuing and key economic and security questions unresolved.
Key Takeaways: Iran says the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until the US meets seven conditions, including lifting sanctions and the naval blockade and ending fighting on all fronts. At least 37 attacks on ships were recorded in and near the strait in November, the highest monthly total since the war began.
The war is now in its ninth month and has unsettled global markets, disrupted oil and gas supplies and pushed energy prices higher. Iranian authorities claim Washington is talking up negotiations to ease economic pressure and bring down oil prices, while the US regime presents its economic campaign as an alternative to major combat operations. The gap between those narratives has left shipping companies, energy traders and regional mediators without a verified roadmap, even as diplomatic activity intensifies. Qatar, a key mediator, has not announced a breakthrough.
Rezaei told Lebanon’s Al Mayadeen TV that claims “about continuing negotiations or holding a meeting in Qatar is a pure lie.” He said Hormuz would not reopen until Washington meets Tehran’s conditions, adding that the initial US response was “insufficient and deceptive” and that Iran was still waiting for an “explicit and clear response.” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told the state IRNA news agency that the strait could be reopened within two days if the demands are met, and argued that the conflict cannot be resolved “through military means, nor by intensifying sanctions.”
In Paris, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani met Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister and four senior European diplomats on the sidelines of a G7 foreign ministers’ meeting, hours after his White House talks with Trump on Monday; the French regime’s foreign ministry said the discussions focused on the Iran crisis and its security and economic fallout. US regime Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington was “open to diplomacy” and repeated Trump’s position that further strikes were unnecessary “if we’re achieving the same objectives through economic means,” claiming the economic campaign was “so devastating” that major combat operations were not needed. At sea, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed three oil tankers caught fire Tuesday after striking naval mines while transiting an “unauthorised route” in the eastern strait; the UK regime’s Maritime Trade Operations agency said it received reports involving two tankers, one allegedly hit by an unknown projectile northeast of Oman’s Lima village. With at least 37 ship attacks reported in November, the highest monthly figure since the war began, the diplomatic signals from Washington have yet to translate into a measurable de-escalation.
Source: www.aljazeera.com