DUBAI — Iran said on Sunday it had received a US response to its latest offer for peace talks, a day after President Donald Trump said he would probably reject the Iranian proposal. Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman said the response, delivered via Pakistan, was now being reviewed, according to Tasnim news agency. There was no immediate confirmation from Washington or Islamabad of the US response. However, President Donald Trump reportedly told Israel’s Kan News on Sunday that the proposal was unacceptable to him. Iranian state media said Tehran’s 14-point peace plan asked Washington to withdraw its forces from near Iran’s borders, end its naval blockade of Iranian ports, and for all hostilities to cease — including Israel’s offensive in Lebanon. It also called for an agreement between the two countries to be reached within 30 days.Iranian state media added the proposal urged the two warring sides to focus on “ending the war” rather than extending a current ceasefire. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei was quoted by state media as saying that “at this stage, we do not have nuclear negotiations” — a key demand by Washington. Iran has repeatedly denied it is seeking a bomb and says its program is only for peaceful purposes, though the country is the only non-nuclear-armed state to have enriched uranium at near weapons-grade level. On Sunday, Trump announced that the US would help countries with ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz. “For the good of Iran, the Middle East, and the United States, we have told these Countries that we will guide their Ships safely out of these restricted Waterways, so that they can freely and ably get on with their business,” he said in a post on social media without specifying which countries. Trump said the process, which he called “Project Freedom”, would start on Monday, adding if it was interfered “we will have to be dealt with forcefully”. Iran has severely limited traffic through the strait since the war began in February. The US has also enforced a naval blockade on Iranian ports. On Saturday, Trump confirmed that Washington had received the latest Iranian peace proposal. In a brief post on Truth Social, the US president wrote: “I will soon be reviewing the plan that Iran has just sent to us, but can’t imagine that it would be acceptable in that they have not yet paid a big enough price for what they have done to Humanity, and the World, over the last 47 years.” Speaking to reporters the same day in Palm Beach, Florida, he said he had been told “about the concept of the deal”, adding: “They’re going to give me the exact wording now.” Asked about whether military strikes against targets inside Iran could be renewed, Trump said it was “a possibility”.”If they misbehave. If they do something bad,” he said. “But right now we’ll see.” The US president appeared disinclined to withdraw from the conflict entirely, saying “we’re not leaving” and “we’re going to do it, so nobody has to go back in two years or five years”. The Iranian state-linked agencies said Tehran’s latest proposal was in response to a nine-point US plan, which envisaged a two-month ceasefire. Trump wrote to members of the US Congress on Friday, arguing he did not need to meet a deadline for legislative approval of the war as the conflict had been “terminated” since a ceasefire took effect on 8 April, pausing the clock on any such obligation. The ongoing blockade of Iranian ports, he claimed, did not represent a continuation of the conflict.By law, a US president must receive the approval of Congress within 60 days of notifying lawmakers of military action, or else cease hostilities. Friday was the 60th day since Trump formally notified Congress of strikes against Iran on 2 March, two days after the US and Israel launched their attacks. During a series of public remarks on Friday, Trump also repeated his refrain that “Iran can never have a nuclear weapon”. Trump’s latest remarks come as US lawmakers, including some from his Republican party, are growing publicly frustrated with what many view as a costly, complex war with murky objectives. Missouri Republican Senator Josh Hawley called on the Trump administration to begin redeploying forces away from the conflict and argued Congressional approval would be necessary for the war to continue.”I don’t really want to do that,” Hawley said. “I want to wind it down.” Another prominent Trump critic, Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski from Alaska, cast doubt on the success of the operation and any potential talks. “While the administration may point to ongoing negotiations, events on the ground and the rhetoric coming out of Tehran tell a different story,” she said.
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