Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Says U.S. Demands End 21-Hour Talks in Islamabad

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said a 21-hour round of talks with the United States ended without specific results after Washington raised “new and excessive demands” during the negotiations.

The statement said Iran agreed, on the fortieth day of the war, to conduct talks via Pakistan in Islamabad after U.S. President Donald Trump accepted an Iranian plan consisting of 10 points as a framework for negotiations.

Masrawy

Iran’s statement also said new American proposals were raised in recent days alongside the visit of the Pakistani army chief to Tehran in his capacity as mediator, and Iran is studying the proposals “so far without issuing an official response.”

On the condition for stopping the war, the statement stressed that among the essential conditions for accepting a temporary ceasefire is stopping operations on all fronts, including Lebanon, and it accused Israel of violating this condition from the start through its assaults.

The statement added that any attempts to obstruct maritime navigation, including a blockade, will be considered a violation of the ceasefire, which would lead to the suspension of opening the Strait of Hormuz.

In a Sunday editorial, the New York Times said the war waged by U.S. President Donald Trump against Iran weakened the United States and triggered strategic setbacks after Trump’s decision since his attack on Iran on February 28.

The editorial described Trump’s justifications as “reckless,” saying they were made without congressional approval or the backing of a majority of allies, and it argued that the following six weeks revealed weak military planning.

Al-Mutadawil Al-Arabi

The editorial board said the United States did not lay out a plan to respond to a potential Iranian move such as closing the Strait of Hormuz, and it said Trump did not develop a strategy to address the issue of enriched uranium before escalating with statements threatening to destroy Iranian civilization.

In the same framing, the editorial said Iran’s influence through the Strait of Hormuz has grown to affect about 20% of global oil and gas trade, after nearly closing the strait.

Separately, the editorial board in yalibnan argued that “threats without follow-through” have repeated from Carter’s Iran crisis to Obama’s red lines and today’s Hormuz standoff, and it said the world increasingly feels that the clock has stopped.

Iran’s official news agency said Iran rejects negotiations with the United States and refused to participate in the second round of talks, while also saying circulating reports about holding negotiations in Islamabad are not true.

“The official Iranian news agency announced Iran's refusal to participate in the second round of talks with the United States, in a move that reflects escalating tensions between Iran and Washington amid ambiguity surrounding the future of the two sides' relationship”

Al-Mutadawil Al-Arabi

The report said Iran told that the current circumstances do not provide any real opportunity to make progress in the negotiations, and it said the recent American statements represent “media games aimed at pressuring Iran.”

U.S. President Donald Trump announced that an American delegation would head to Pakistan to try to resume the talks, and the report said Trump threatened the possibility of conducting a broad military operation if no agreement with Iran is reached.

In the same dispute over maritime leverage, Iran’s Supreme National Security Council statement said Iran is moving forward with monitoring and controlling the movement of ships through the Strait of Hormuz until the end of the war and achieving peace.

The statement also said this would be done by organizing the passage of ships and issuing permits under specific controls, while imposing fees related to security and safety services and environmental protection.