Tehran has put forward seven preconditions to Washington via Qatari intermediaries as a basis for resuming negotiations to bring the conflict to a close. A diplomat relayed that Iran has signalled its preparedness for military confrontation if the terms it has put forward are not accepted, with Qatar acting as an intermediary in passing those conditions to Washington as part of broader ceasefire efforts.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, was reported by a broadcast outlet to have stated that a reply from President Trump had yet to be received. The seven conditions were not detailed in any public statement by Rezaei.
He outlined three conditions Iran had put forward as prerequisites for ending the conflict: a ceasefire across all fronts, the unfreezing of Iranian assets, and the lifting of the naval blockade, adding that accepting these terms would serve Washington's interests. He stated that Iran stood ready for an all-out armed conflict.
Rezaei stated that another strike by the United States was considered likely based on assessments by the Iranian military, even as he outlined Tehran's objective of bringing the conflict to a close at the earliest opportunity. He added that military planning had been revised following earlier rounds of hostilities, with attention now directed toward naval assets operating across the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, and the Arabian Sea.
According to the Tehran Times, Rezaei claimed that Iran had recently conducted a test of a multi-warhead anti-ship missile in proximity to a vessel or aircraft carrier belonging to the United States. He indicated that any further military action by the United States could prompt retaliatory measures against American armed forces installations across the region, along with commercial enterprises and businesses linked to the country operating there.
Rezaei stated that Tehran sought an end to hostilities at the earliest opportunity, noting that the conflict remained active on the ground.
Military action involving the United States and Israel against Iran commenced on 28 February. Joint air strikes carried out by forces acting under the direction of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu are reported to have killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and a number of senior officials. Iran launched attacks on US military installations throughout the Gulf region, and the two nations have traded multiple rounds of strikes in the period since.
Trump expressed a desire for the conflict to conclude soon and was scheduled to hold talks with the heads of six Gulf states on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York. Backchannel dialogue between Tehran and Washington has persisted through third-party intermediaries in the region.
Both Qatar and Pakistan have played a role in attempts to restart talks following the expiry last month of a memorandum of understanding signed in Islamabad, which failed to yield a durable resolution. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi is scheduled to travel to Tehran as part of ongoing diplomatic outreach by Islamabad.
Baghaei, a spokesman for the foreign ministry, confirmed Islamabad's role as a mediator while stating he had no knowledge of any particular proposal from Washington being conveyed by Naqvi.
Rezaei indicated that a withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty remained off the table for Tehran, even as external pressure over its atomic activities mounted. The spokesperson indicated that Tehran's nuclear posture had remained unchanged and that Iran continued to abide by a religious edict forbidding the development of nuclear weapons, while noting that sustained pressure from Washington could lead Tehran to revisit its stance.
Iran's atomic programme has long been a focal point in the broader dispute between the country and both the United States and Israel. The United States stated its aim of halting any Iranian development of nuclear weapons, while Tehran insisted its atomic programme served purely civilian purposes.
