President Donald Trump has sent a proposed Iran framework back for tougher terms, according to reports by Axios and The New York Times, while Tehran says it will not approve any agreement unless Iranian rights are protected.
The reports said Trump returned a new framework for Iran to consider. Details of the proposed changes remain unclear.
“We will not approve any agreement until we are certain that the rights of the Iranian people have been upheld,” Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said in a video broadcast on Iranian state television, according to AFP-linked reporting.
Trump has said his priorities include preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons and reopening the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane. In an interview broadcast Saturday on Lara Trump’s Fox News program, Trump said the guarantee he wants is that “there will be no nuclear weapons.”
Trump also suggested talks could still produce an agreement, while warning that Washington could take another path if negotiations fail.
“We’re close to a very good deal,” Trump said on Iran .
“If you’re going to be in a hurry, you’re not going to make a good deal, and slowly but surely, we’re getting, I think, what we want — and if we don’t get what we want, we’re going to end it a different way,” Trump said.
Tehran has disputed parts of Trump’s public account. Iranian media reported that Iran wants the release of $12 billion in frozen assets before substantive nuclear talks. Iranian media also said Tehran rejected Trump’s claim that its enriched uranium stockpile would be destroyed.
Trump also suggested talks could still break down.
“I’m in no hurry,” he said. “If we don’t get what we want, we’re going to end in a different way.”
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said Saturday at a defense summit in Asia that Washington was “more than capable” of restarting military action if needed.
Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB reported that the Revolutionary Guards shot down a U.S. military drone near Iranian waters. Washington has not confirmed the claim.
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