Iran rejects 'unacceptable' terms of new proposed deal

Qatar has presented Iran with a new proposal aimed at ending its eight-month war with the United States, but Iranian officials have dismissed the initiative as unacceptable, Reuters reported Wednesday. According to an official familiar with the negotiations who is not Iranian, Qatari mediators submitted the draft agreement to Tehran on Sunday. The official said Iranian authorities were reviewing the proposal and were expected to respond by the end of the week.

Qatar and Pakistan have been leading diplomatic efforts to bring the conflict to an end. The latest proposal reportedly outlines a seven-day process designed to address concerns raised by both Washington and Tehran. Under the plan, the two sides would undertake specific confidence-building measures each day, with several countries serving as guarantors of the agreement. The official said the proposed timetable could begin as early as next week.

However, a senior Iranian official directly involved in the negotiations disputed the characterization of the initiative, saying Qatar had presented only "unacceptable ideas and not an offer". The official emphasized that Iran had not changed its position on the nuclear issue and remained unwilling to make concessions. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Wednesday that Tehran was maintaining close contact with mediators to examine proposals that could facilitate the implementation of Iran's own seven-day plan for ending the regional conflict.

Araghchi said Iran remained committed to giving diplomatic efforts an opportunity to succeed and maintained that its proposal could be implemented in less than a week. Significant differences remain between the American and Iranian positions. Washington insists that negotiations must address Iran's longstanding nuclear program from the beginning. Tehran, however, demands that its conditions be satisfied first, including the removal of the American blockade on Iranian ports and the lifting of sanctions targeting Iranian oil exports.

Iran also continues to reject Western allegations that its nuclear activities are intended for military purposes. In late September, Tehran submitted a separate seven-day proposal that included the possibility of reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a critical international shipping route for energy supplies, provided certain conditions were met. US President Donald Trump rejected that proposal, leading Qatar to pursue further mediation. The official familiar with the negotiations said the draft presented on Sunday differed from Iran's earlier initiative, although the specific provisions of the new document were not immediately available.

The same official had previously told Reuters that Qatari mediators coordinated with Washington before traveling to Tehran. The diplomatic developments come as the Trump administration considers whether to resume military operations against Iran. The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that Washington had advised several Gulf Arab countries to prepare for a potentially brief but intensive American offensive following next week's midterm elections.

According to the report, the US military has begun reinforcing regional air defenses and repositioning personnel away from installations that could be targeted by Iranian forces. The White House declined to confirm the reported preparations, saying it would not comment on “sensitive military plans that may or may not exist" while stressing that “President Trump keeps all options on the table to ensure that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon."

Trump also reiterated his willingness to use military force during a campaign rally Tuesday at the Port of Corpus Christi in Texas. “Somebody asked me yesterday, it’s very interesting, ‘If you had to do it again, would you have attacked Iran?’ I said absolutely," Trump told supporters. “It’s one of the greatest things I ever did," he added. The President also asserted that he would decide when the war ends, insisting that any agreement must permanently prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.

"Somebody asked me before, when will the war in Iran end? I said, whenever I want it to end. It'll be very quick, but we have to have it end properly, with total and complete - a total statement, they will never have a nuclear weapon. Number one state sponsor [of terrorism]. They will never have a nuclear weapon."