Iran says US accepted some of its Hormuz demands, but response is ‘inadequate’

Tehran: Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei on Monday said the United States had accepted some of Tehran's seven conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, but described Washington's response as 'inadequate.'

"The U.S. has agreed to some of Iran's seven conditions, but we consider its response inadequate. Iranian diplomacy has changed, and there will be no return to the status quo ante," Rezaei posted on X.

Earlier, Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the strategic waterway would remain closed until Washington met Tehran's demands, which are based on a 14-point memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed in June.

In an interview with state-run Press TV published on Sunday, Rezaei said Washington had conveyed proposals through Pakistan, Qatar and Iraq over the past two months. Tehran responded with its seven-point list, warning that it would neither reopen the Strait nor negotiate until its demands were addressed.

Rezaei said Washington had accepted some proposals, while the status of others remained unclear. Ghalibaf also confirmed that the United States had recently sent proposals through a mediator.

According to Al Jazeera, Iran has offered to reopen the Strait and resume negotiations if Washington ends its naval blockade and lifts restrictions on Iranian oil sales. Tehran had conveyed its demands through Qatari mediators last month.

Rezaei warned that any fresh US attack on Iran would prompt Tehran to target American assets in West Asia, including data centres, artificial intelligence facilities, sensors and infrastructure around the Strait of Hormuz and the United Arab Emirates.

He said Iran would not return to its previous diplomatic approach but would not abandon diplomacy altogether, adding that Tehran would continue resisting until its demands were met.

On February 28, Israel and the United States launched joint attacks on Tehran and other Iranian cities. Iran retaliated with missile and drone strikes targeting Israel and US bases and assets across the region, while tightening its control over the Strait of Hormuz.

A ceasefire was reached on April 8. On June 18, Iran and the United States signed an MoU aimed at ending the conflict across the region. The agreement envisaged negotiations within 60 days, until August 17, to reach a final deal on Iran's nuclear programme and sanctions relief. However, the two sides failed to make sufficient progress as tensions continued.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that Iran could intensify its actions against Washington ahead of the November 3 midterm elections, believing they would hurt the United States.

Speaking at a political event in Tennessee, Trump said Washington had the capacity to end the war quickly.

"They'll probably do a little bit extra before the election, thinking it's going to hurt us," Trump said, adding, "But we could end it really quick."

Trump also claimed that his administration had shown restraint despite degrading Iran's naval forces. He asserted that 159 Iranian ships had been sunk since late February, when the conflict began.

(With inputs from ANI and Reuters)