Iran said on Monday it had not yet decided whether to join a second round of talks with the United States, even as Pakistan prepared to host a US delegation, with Tehran accusing Washington of violating the ceasefire and showing no real seriousness about diplomacy.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Iran had no plan as of now for the next round of negotiations and said US actions had only deepened mistrust.
“As I am speaking to you now, we have no plan for the next round of negotiations,” he said.
Baghaei said Washington had undermined the process from the outset of the ceasefire.
He said the United States first tried to argue that Lebanon was not part of the truce, despite Pakistan’s mediator saying otherwise, and then continued what Iran describes as a naval blockade and other hostile actions in and around the Strait of Hormuz, including an attack on an Iranian commercial vessel.
He said such actions were clear ceasefire violations and that the blockade itself amounted to aggression under international law.
“Behavior and words are completely incompatible,” he said, adding that Iran would decide its next steps based only on national interests, not deadlines or ultimatums.
Baghaei said Iran had not started the war and had acted only in self-defense. He warned that if the United States or Israel launched any new attack, Iran’s armed forces would respond.
He also said Tehran could not forget what he called two US betrayals of diplomacy over the past year, saying Washington had twice attacked Iran during diplomatic processes.
“We cannot forget that twice America betrayed diplomacy,” he said.
Pakistan remains sole mediator
Baghaei said Pakistan remained Iran’s only formal mediator, though other countries were making efforts.
He said Iran was still reviewing the latest package conveyed through Pakistan after a US 15-point proposal, Iran’s 10-point response, discussions in Islamabad and further review during Pakistani army chief Asim Munir’s visit to Tehran.
He rejected suggestions that Iran had made a wholly new proposal, saying Tehran’s position had remained steady while the US side kept changing its demands.
“The American side keeps changing its demands, but we have remained steadfast,” he said.
He said some US demands were unacceptable and that repeated insistence on them would not change Iran’s position.
Baghaei also dismissed trust as a basis for negotiations with Washington.
“There is no trust,” he said.
Hormuz, Europe and red lines
Much of Baghaei’s remarks focused on the Strait of Hormuz. He said Iran’s actions there were lawful and defensive, arguing that before the US and Israeli attacks there had been no problem in the waterway.
“Before February 28, the Strait of Hormuz was safe and secure,” he said.
He said the international community should hold the United States and Israel responsible for the current insecurity, not Iran.
He added that Iranian authorities were still examining whether recent incidents involving Indian-linked ships had in fact been caused by Iranian forces.
Baghaei said as long as the current situation continued, it was unrealistic to speak of a full return to normal traffic through Hormuz. He said Iran had concluded that new rules or protocols would be needed to ensure safe passage in the future.
He also rejected European criticism, including comments from EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, saying Europe could not invoke international law selectively.
“You cannot use international law as a convenient tool,” he said.
Baghaei said Iran would not negotiate over its defense capabilities and said the transfer of enriched uranium had never been an Iranian option in the talks.
On oil, he said Iran was using all available means to keep its oil industry functioning and maintain exports despite the blockade and wartime pressure.
