TEHRAN (AFP) – Iran's chief negotiator on Tuesday issued an ultimatum to the United States, demanding that it accept the conditions of the 14-point peace plan proposed by Tehran to end the war in the Middle East. Meanwhile, the U.S. President, Donald Trump, warned that the truce is on the verge of collapse.
"There is no alternative other than to accept the rights of the Iranian people as outlined in the 14-point proposal. Any other approach will be fruitless and will result in failure after failure," wrote Mohamad Bagher Ghalibaf on X (formerly Twitter).
The Iranian parliament speaker also added that the longer Washington delays in accepting the proposal, "the more U.S. taxpayers will have to pay."
The escalating tensions raise fears of a return to hostilities in the Gulf, dampen expectations of a quick agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to trade, and are putting upward pressure on oil prices.
"Unacceptable"
Trump on Monday rejected the latest Iranian counter-proposal, calling it "totally unacceptable," and stated that the ceasefire, which has been in effect since April 8, is on the verge of collapse. Iran stated that its plan demands an end to the war in the region, the lifting of the U.S. blockade on its ports, which has been in place since mid-April, and the release of its frozen assets.
After more than a month of truce, negotiations are stalled following a first round...
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TEHRAN (AFP).- Iran's chief negotiator on Tuesday issued an ultimatum to the United States to accept the conditions of the 14-point peace plan proposed by Tehran to end the war in the Middle East. For his part, U.S. President Donald Trump warned that the truce is on the verge of collapse. "There is no alternative other than to accept the rights of the Iranian people as outlined in the 14-point proposal. Any other approach will be fruitless and will result in failure after failure," wrote Mohamad Bagher Ghalibaf on X. The Iranian parliament speaker also said that the longer Washington delays accepting the proposal, "the more U.S. taxpayers will have to pay." The growing tension raises fears of a return to hostilities in the Gulf, dampens expectations of a quick agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to trade, and is again pushing up oil prices. Trump rejected the latest Iranian counter-proposal on Monday, calling it "totally unacceptable," and said that the ceasefire, in effect since April 8, is on the verge of collapse. Iran said that in its plan, it demanded an end to the war in the region, the lifting of the U.S. blockade of its ports, imposed since mid-April, and the release of its frozen assets. After more than a month of truce, negotiations are stalled after a first round of talks last month, through its mediator Pakistan, in which no progress was made. U.S. President Donald Trump, in the gardens of the White House, Jose Luis Magana - FR159526 AP. The ceasefire with Iran is "on life support, like when a doctor says: 'Sir, your loved one has exactly a 1% chance of survival,'" added the Republican tycoon. Qalibaf responded to him on the social network X that the armed forces of the Islamic Republic are ready to "teach a lesson to any aggressor." During a phone call with a Fox News journalist, Trump also said on Monday that he was considering reactivating his ship protection operation to cross the strategic Strait of Hormuz, blocked by Iran since the Israeli-U.S. offensive on February 28 that triggered the conflict. This is an initiative that he suspended on May 5, a day after launching it, due to the "significant progress made" towards an agreement to end the conflict, which affected the global economy and the entire Middle East. Precisely, the newspaper The Wall Street Journal revealed on Monday that the United Arab Emirates carried out its own military operations against Iran in April, targeting oil facilities on Lavan Island, Iranian territory in the Gulf. This direct involvement, not yet confirmed by Abu Dhabi, could mark a turning point in the regional escalation: so far, no Arab country in the Gulf has openly presented itself as a belligerent party. Only the United States and Israel officially claim their participation in the attacks against Tehran. At a press conference, the spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Esmail Baqai, reported that Iran's demands also include the "release of assets belonging to the Iranian people, which have been unjustly frozen in foreign banks for years." According to The Wall Street Journal, which quotes sources close to the matter, Tehran's counter-proposal provides for a gradual reopening of Ormuz and a simultaneous lifting of the U.S. blockade. The American newspaper says that Iran mentions negotiations on the nuclear issue within a period of 30 days. Oil tankers anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, off Bandar Abbas, Iran, on Saturday, May 2, 2026. (Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA via AP) Amirhosein Khorgooi - ISNA. It offered to "dilute" part of its highly enriched uranium and transfer the rest to a "third country," but rejected the dismantling of its facilities and a 20-year moratorium on its uranium enrichment process. The United States, Israel, and its allies have long accused Iran of wanting to build a nuclear bomb. Tehran denies this. On the other hand, in Lebanon, another front of the war where a truce has theoretically been in effect since April 17, the pro-Iranian group Hezbollah and Israel continue their attacks. New talks between Lebanon and the Hebrew State will be held in Washington on Thursday and Friday, which are expected to pave the way for peace negotiations. War in the Middle East Iran United States.