Iran receives US response to Qatari-mediated proposal: Spokesperson

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has received the US response to a proposal conveyed through Qatari mediation, government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani said Wednesday, according to state broadcaster IRIB.

Mohajerani did not immediately disclose the contents of Washington’s response or say what Tehran’s next step would be.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, meanwhile, said Tehran is making every possible effort to ensure the success of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, according to the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA).

He said that explaining the benefits of the negotiations and what had been achieved should not be interpreted as submission to Iran’s adversaries but rather as an exercise in transparency.

Pezeshkian also said Iran had not compromised on its principles in any provision of the Islamabad memorandum.

He described the agreement as “a source of pride” and “a decisive and highly influential document” in the history of developments involving Iran.

The development comes after Araghchi said Monday that Qatari mediators would present Washington with new ideas discussed with Tehran on how to meet Iran’s conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. He said he expected the US response to be relayed back to Iran after those consultations.

Iran has said its conditions include an end to US military and economic pressure, the release of frozen or restricted Iranian assets and agreement on a safe shipping route. Tehran conveyed those conditions to Washington through Qatar during a two-hour exchange on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly last week.

Iran has kept the Strait of Hormuz restricted while demanding that Washington fulfill commitments under a June memorandum of understanding. Iran says the waterway will not fully reopen until Iran’s conditions are met and US commitments are implemented.

In February, the US and Israel launched a war against Iran, which responded with attacks on Israel and US targets in the region before a ceasefire agreement was reached in April.

Washington and Tehran later signed a memorandum of understanding in June concerning freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, but implementation stalled over disagreements related to security in the strategic waterway.