Iran Rules Out Talks With US Until Its Demands Are Met, Pezeshkian Tells Pakistan’s Army Chief

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian has told Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, that Tehran will not enter talks with the United States until its demands are met, according to an Iranian readout of their meeting on Tuesday.

Munir’s visit to Tehran was the latest in a series of Pakistani mediation efforts aimed at reviving diplomacy between Washington and Tehran. But the message from Iran’s leadership was unyielding. Parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who also met Munir, said the United States could not regain Iran’s trust until it fulfilled seven conditions Tehran set out last month for reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

A strait at the centre of the standoff

The Strait of Hormuz, through which a large share of the world’s oil and gas shipments pass, has become the central pressure point of the crisis. Iran has offered to reopen the waterway within days if Washington lifts its maritime blockade, eases restrictions on Iranian oil exports, releases frozen assets and ends hostilities. The Trump administration, for its part, insists that Iran’s nuclear programme must be part of any negotiation — an ordering of priorities Tehran rejects.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has blamed Washington for insecurity around the strait and called for a regional security arrangement without foreign military forces. Messages continue to pass between the two sides through mediators, but no comprehensive agreement has been announced.

Deadlock with wider costs

The standoff is being felt far beyond the Gulf. Energy markets have reacted sharply to the maritime insecurity, with Brent crude approaching $110 a barrel amid fears over attacks on shipping and energy infrastructure. For now, both capitals appear to be trying to dictate the sequence of any deal: Tehran wants economic pressure lifted before concessions, while Washington wants concessions first. Until one side moves, the deadlock — and the risk that it tips back into open conflict — is likely to hold.

Source: Reuters via Just Security