Jakarta, ThedailyID — Iran has sent six conditions to the United States for ending the ongoing war. Tehran delivered the demands through Qatar, which is acting as a mediator.
Iranian security chief Mohsen Rezaei outlined the conditions in an interview with Al Jazeera on Saturday, September 19. He said Iran had communicated the demands to the US through Qatar.
However, Rezaei also said Iran was ready to continue fighting if the conditions were not accepted.
“We will confront America with greater force, and with more numerous and more painful strikes,” Rezaei said, as reported on Monday, September 21.
The six conditions outlined by Rezaei are:
- End the war on all fronts, particularly in Lebanon.
- Release billions of dollars in frozen Iranian funds.
- End the US naval blockade of Iranian ports.
- End US interference in Iran’s internal affairs.
- End US cooperation with what Tehran calls “the opponents of our revolution.”
- End all US attacks on Iranian territory.
Rezaei said accepting the conditions would be in Washington’s interest. He also said Iran was not afraid of threats from US President Donald Trump.
The latest demands are similar to those included in a June memorandum of understanding (MoU). That agreement also called for an end to fighting on all fronts, including Lebanon.
In addition, the June MoU included commitments on sovereignty and non-interference. It also covered an end to the naval blockade and the release of frozen Iranian funds.
However, the June agreement contained several other provisions. These included a proposed US$300 billion reconstruction plan and a commitment that Iran would not develop or acquire nuclear weapons.
The agreement also called for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz for safe shipping. It further included exemptions for Iranian crude oil exports and other services.
Moreover, the MoU called for the US not to impose new sanctions on Iran. It also included a commitment against deploying additional US forces in the region.
Rezaei did not mention US war reparations in his latest list of conditions. Tehran had previously demanded such compensation.
Meanwhile, Adel Abdel Ghafar, a senior Middle East researcher at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, offered another interpretation of Iran’s move.
“With the failure of the Islamabad MoU and … Rezaei delivering the conditions through Qatar, Iran is putting the responsibility back on Washington,” Abdel Ghafar said, according to Al Jazeera.
He said Iran was doing so publicly to maximize the political effect of its demands.
Abdel Ghafar also described the situation as a deadlock between the two sides. The US can maintain its naval blockade and has air superiority, but Iran has not surrendered.
At the same time, Iran has been unable to break the blockade. However, Abdel Ghafar said Tehran still has enough asymmetric influence to complicate the situation for all sides.
For now, the US has not responded publicly to Iran’s latest conditions.
