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US and Iran negotiators are pushing for a peace deal to end the eight-month war, with altered proposals but no breakthrough coming in on Monday.
“Consultations through mediators are very intensive,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said after his team departed Qatar on Sunday.
“We have presented our conditions and proposals and everything depends on the political rationality of Washington,” he added.
The teams are looking to secure a deal quickly as President Trump ramps up his warnings that all-out war could resume following the midterm elections on Tuesday.
“The only reason we are not finished with Iran is because I want to be nice,” Trump told a crowd in Iowa on Sunday night.
“ I want to try and save all those lives if I can. But at some point, we’re going to have to give them the hammer,” he added. “It’s going to be over very soon. Very soon.”
Tehran, however, believes that continuing war will be the likely outcome rather than a diplomatic solution, one Iranian source told Reuters.
Part of the problem comes from both sides being unwilling to make any compromises, with Iran continuing to push its seven-point deal that Trump rejected last month.
The plan calls for the US to end its sanctions and naval blockade against Iran in exchange for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, all while pushing aside the issue of Tehran’s nuclear program.
“The basis of dialog and talks between Iran and the US via mediators is still Iran’s seven-step proposal, which is now condensed, making it possible to implement it within two days,” said Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei.
Along with Gulf nations, both Chinese and Russian officials have been in talks with Iran to push for diplomacy and avoid a reignition of a war, which Tehran has threatened would affect the wider Middle East.
With Post wires
