Iran plans to submit own nuclear proposal to US soon
TEHRAN: Iran said on Monday it will soon present a counter-proposal on a nuclear deal with the United States, after it had described Washington's offer as containing "ambiguities". Tehran and Washington have held five rounds of talks since April to thrash out a new nuclear accord to replace the deal with major powers that US President Donald Trump abandoned during his first term in 2018. The longtime foes have been locked in a diplomatic standoff over Iran's uranium enrichment, with Tehran defending it as a "non-negotiable" right and Washington describing it as a "red line".
On May 31, after the fifth round of talks, Iran said it had received "elements" of a US proposal, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi later saying the text contained "ambiguities". Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei criticised the US proposal as "lacking elements" reflective of the previous rounds of negotiations, without providing further details. "We will soon submit our own proposed plan to the other side once it is finalised," Baqaei told a weekly press briefing. "It is a proposal that is reasonable, logical and balanced, and we strongly recommend that the American side value this opportunity."
Also on Monday, Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi told state news agency IRNA that Iran's response "is a framework for agreement". "If we reach an understanding on this framework in principle, further extensive negotiations will begin on its details," he added. Iran's parliament speaker has said the US proposal failed to include the lifting of sanctions -- a key demand for Tehran, which has been reeling under their weight for years.
Trump, who has revived his "maximum pressure" campaign of sanctions on Iran since taking office in January, has repeatedly said Tehran will not be allowed any uranium enrichment under a potential deal. On Wednesday, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the US offer was "100 per cent against" notions of independence and self-reliance. He insisted that uranium enrichment was "key" to Iran's nuclear programme and that the US "cannot have a say" on the issue.
Iran currently enriches uranium to 60 per cent, far above the 3.67-per cent limit set in the 2015 deal and close though still short of the 90 per cent needed for a nuclear warhead. The United Nations nuclear watchdog on Monday began a Board of Governors meeting in Vienna that will last until Friday to discuss Iran's nuclear activities among other topics. "I call upon Iran urgently to cooperate fully and effectively with the International Atomic Energy Agency," said agency chief Rafael Grossi in his opening speech. "Unless and until Iran assists the agency in resolving the outstanding safeguards issues, the agency will not be in a position to provide assurance that Iran's nuclear programme is exclusively peaceful," he added. — AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Times of Oman
6 hours ago
- Times of Oman
Israel fully ready to launch operation in Iran: Sources
Washington DC [US], June 12 (ANI): Israel is fully ready to launch an operation into Iran, US officials have been told, multiple sources told CBS News. The US anticipates Iran could retaliate on certain American sites in neighboring Iraq. This is part of the reason the US advised some Americans to leave the region earlier Wednesday, with the State Department ordering non-emergency government officials to exit Iraq due to "heightened regional tensions", CBS News reported. US President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff is still planning to meet with Iran for a sixth round of talks on the country's nuclear program in the coming days. Trump on Thursday while attending a performance of Les Miserables at the Kennedy Center said that the US military personnel are being moved out of some countries in the Middle East because it would otherwise be perilous. Trump said that Iran cannot have nuclear weapons. "They (US military personnel) are being moved out (of some countries of the Middle East) because it could be a dangerous place and we will see what have given notice to move out," he said. The comments come after failed round of talks of the US with Iran. "They can't have a nuclear weapon. Very simple. They can't have a nuclear weapon. We're not going to allow that," he said. The US is withdrawing the presence of people who are not deemed essential to operations in the Middle East due to the potential for regional unrest, the US State Department and military said Wednesday as tensions with neighboring Iran rose amid deteriorating nuclear talks, as per The Times of Israel. "President Trump is committed to keeping Americans safe, both at home and abroad. In keeping with that commitment, we are constantly assessing the appropriate personnel posture at all our embassies. Based on our latest analysis, we decided to reduce the footprint of our Mission in Iraq," a State Department official told The Times of Israel. The department also authorized the departure of nonessential personnel and family members from Bahrain and Kuwait, giving them an option on whether to leave the country, as per The Times of Israel. Tensions in the region have been rising in recent days as talks between the US and Iran over its rapidly advancing nuclear program appear to have hit an impasse. (ANI)
Times of Oman
6 hours ago
- Times of Oman
US pulls out diplomats, military families from West Asia over escalating Iran tensions
Washington DC : The US State and Defence Departments have begun moving non-essential personnel out of several locations across West Asia amid growing regional tensions, CNN reported citing US officials and sources familiar with the matter. While the exact cause of the shift in posture remains unclear, a defence official told CNN that US Central Command (CENTCOM) is monitoring "developing tension in the Middle East." President Donald Trump, commenting on the situation, said, "They are being moved out because it could be a dangerous place... we've given notice to move out, and we'll see what happens CNN reported that the voluntary departure of military dependents from locations across the region has been authorized by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. "The safety and security of our service members and their families remains our highest priority," an official said. CENTCOM commander Gen. Michael Kurilla postponed his scheduled testimony before a Senate committee due to the evolving situation, according to a defence official. The State Department, in coordination with the Pentagon, is also preparing to order the departure of non-essential personnel from US embassies in Iraq, Bahrain, and Kuwait, as well as the consulate in Erbil, Iraqi Kurdistan, CNN reported. A local Iraqi official, however, stated that the movements were not connected to the security environment in Iraq. A State Department spokesperson said, "President Trump is committed to keeping Americans safe, both at home and abroad... Based on our latest analysis, we decided to reduce the footprint of our Mission in Iraq." The department also updated its travel advisory, citing "heightened regional tensions" as the reason for the ordered departure. CNN further reported that President Trump expressed waning confidence in reaching a new nuclear agreement with Iran, telling a New York Post podcast that Tehran may be "delaying" the deal. "I'm getting more and more less confident about it... Something happened to them," Trump said, adding that his instincts suggest the deal is increasingly unlikely. In a related development, CNN cited sources saying Trump told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a phone call on Monday to stop discussing a potential attack on Iran. The call, according to Trump, went "very well, very smooth." Last month, CNN reported the US had obtained intelligence suggesting that Israel was preparing for a potential strike on Iranian nuclear facilities. US officials noted signs of Israeli military posturing, including the movement of air munitions and completion of an air exercise, though a final decision by Israeli leadership had not been confirmed. Amid these developments, Iran's Defence Minister Brigadier General Aziz Nasirzadeh issued a stern warning. As per Iran's state-run IRNA news agency, he said if nuclear talks fail and conflict erupts, the US would be "forced to leave the region," asserting that all US bases are within the reach of Iranian forces. "The adversary will certainly suffer heavier casualties," he added, though he did not clarify whether he was referring to the US, Israel, or both.
Observer
14 hours ago
- Observer
Police make arrests in downtown LA during nighttime curfew
LOS ANGELES: Downtown Los Angeles was largely calm overnight into Wednesday, with police arresting at least 25 people for violating a curfew after a fifth day of protests against President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown. Heavily armed security officers, including several riding horses, patrolled near government buildings, while men boarded up storefronts after dark on Tuesday to protect against vandalism. Looting and vandalism in the second-biggest US city have marred the largely peaceful protests over ramped-up arrests by immigration authorities. The demonstrations, which began Friday, and isolated acts of violence prompted Trump to take the extraordinary step of sending in troops, over the objection of the state governor. One protester said that the arrest of migrants in a city with large immigrant and Latino populations was the root of the unrest. "I don't think that part of the problem is the peaceful protests. It's whatever else is happening on the other side that is inciting violence," she said on Tuesday. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the curfew — meant to stop vandalism and looting — was in effect within one square mile (2.5 square kilometers) of the city's more-than-500 square mile area from 8:00 pm and 6:00 am (0300 to 1300 GMT). That zone was off-limits for everyone apart from residents, journalists and emergency services, she added. Protests against immigration arrests by federal law enforcement have also sprung up in cities around the country, including New York, Atlanta, Chicago, San Francisco and Austin. On Tuesday, in the Atlanta suburb of Brookhaven, dozens of demonstrators waved American and Mexican flags and held signs against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the federal agency that has ramped up arrests and deportations of migrants under Trump. "You got people that are being arrested on the street by (immigration) agents that don't wear badges, wear masks... it makes me really angry," 26-year-old protester Brendon Terra said. The Los Angeles protests again turned ugly on Tuesday night, but an hour into the curfew only a handful of protesters were left downtown, with police making several arrests as they warned stragglers to leave. "Multiple groups continue to congregate" within the designated downtown curfew area, the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) wrote on X late on Tuesday. Police arrested at least 25 people on suspicion of violating the curfew as of Tuesday evening, the Los Angeles Times reported, citing an LAPD spokesperson. At their largest, the protests have included a few thousand people taking to the streets, but smaller groups have used the cover of darkness to set fires, daub graffiti and smash windows. Overnight on Monday 23 businesses were looted, police said, adding that more than 500 people had been arrested over recent days. Trump has activated 4,000 National Guard troops in Los Angeles, along with 700 active-duty Marines, in what he has claimed is a necessary escalation to take back control, even though local law enforcement authorities insisted they could handle the unrest. A military spokeswoman said the Marines were expected to be on the streets by Wednesday. Their mission was to guard federal facilities and provide protection to federal officers during immigration enforcement operations. The Pentagon said the deployment would cost US taxpayers $134 million. Photographs issued by the Marine Corps showed men in combat fatigues using riot shields to practice crowd control techniques at the Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach. Late on Tuesday, Texas Governor Greg Abbott said his state would deploy its National Guard "to locations across the state to ensure peace & order" after solidarity protests. California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who has clashed with the president before, said Trump's shock militarisation of the city was the behavior of "a tyrant, not a president." In a filing to the US District Court in Northern California, Newsom asked for an injunction preventing the use of troops for policing. US law largely prevents the use of the military as a police force — absent the declaration of an insurrection, which Trump has mused. — AFP
