TEHRAN: Iran has sent its response to a United States proposal aimed at ending the ongoing regional war through Pakistani mediators, according to Iranian state media on Sunday.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran sent today through Pakistani mediators its response to the latest text proposed by the United States to end the war,” Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported.
Iranian news agency ISNA said Tehran’s reply mainly focused on ending hostilities and ensuring maritime security in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz.
“It should be noted that the main focus of Iran’s response to the US proposal is on ‘ending the war and maritime security’ in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz,” ISNA reported without disclosing further details.
Iran has been reviewing a 14-point proposal presented by Washington that seeks a formal end to hostilities and the opening of a 30-day negotiating period covering Iran’s nuclear programme, sanctions relief and freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Strait of Hormuz, through which nearly one-fifth of global oil supplies previously passed, has become one of the key flashpoints in the conflict after Tehran largely restricted non-Iranian shipping through the waterway.
Diplomatic sources had earlier confirmed that Pakistan was acting as a mediator and had conveyed the American proposal to Tehran.
With US President Donald Trump expected to visit China this week, pressure has increased to secure an agreement to end the conflict, which has triggered a global energy crisis and raised concerns about the world economy.
Trump said on Friday that he expected Iran’s response to the US proposal “supposedly tonight” as efforts continued to preserve a fragile truce and initiate peace negotiations.
Earlier, the US president had also announced the suspension of “Project Freedom” — a naval escort mission for commercial ships travelling through the Strait of Hormuz — citing progress in negotiations and requests from Pakistan and other countries. However, the wider naval blockade on Iranian ports remains in place.
Pakistan has meanwhile expressed optimism that the United States and Iran are moving closer towards a peace agreement.
During a weekly media briefing on Thursday, Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said Islamabad expected an agreement “sooner rather than later”.
“We remain optimistic. A simple answer would be that we expect an agreement sooner rather than later,” he said. “We hope that the parties will come to a peaceful, sustainable solution and bring peace, not just to our region but internationally as well.”
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar also held talks earlier this week with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi amid signs that Washington and Tehran were inching closer to a preliminary understanding.
The optimism, however, weakened on Friday after a US fighter jet fired upon and disabled two Iranian-flagged tankers that Washington claimed had violated its naval blockade of Iranian ports.
An Iranian military official told local media that the country’s navy had responded “to American terrorism with strikes” before adding that the clashes had since ended.
The latest confrontation followed another flare-up between US and Iranian forces overnight from Thursday to Friday in the Strait of Hormuz, where Tehran has attempted to tighten control in order to collect tolls from foreign vessels and increase economic pressure on Washington and its allies.
On Sunday, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned that any future attacks on Iranian tankers or commercial ships would result in retaliatory strikes against US interests in the region.
“Any attack on Iranian tankers and commercial vessels will result in a heavy attack on one of the American centres in the region and enemy ships,” the IRGC said, according to Iranian media, referring to the earlier US attacks on two Iranian tankers in the Gulf of Oman.
Meanwhile, Iranian state television reported that military central command chief Ali Abdollahi met Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared publicly since assuming office in March.
According to state TV, Khamenei issued “new directives and guidance for the continuation of operations to confront the enemy”, though no further details or timing of the meeting were provided.
The conflict between the United States and Iran began more than two months ago after the US and Israel launched strikes inside Iran on February 28.
Although a comprehensive peace agreement has yet to be finalised, large-scale hostilities have mostly subsided since both sides agreed to a Pakistan-brokered ceasefire on April 8.
Following the ceasefire, direct talks between US and Iranian officials were held in Islamabad on April 11 and 12, with Pakistan facilitating the negotiations. While the discussions ended without a breakthrough, both sides avoided a collapse in dialogue.
As difficulties emerged in arranging a second round of talks, Islamabad returned to its role as a facilitator and intermediary between Washington and Tehran.
Among the main unresolved issues are unrestricted navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and US demands for long-term guarantees regarding Iran’s nuclear programme, including restrictions on uranium enrichment and safeguards against weaponisation.