- Iran says no military solution to war, calls for negotiations.
- Urges ceasefire, unfreezing of its assets, lifting of sanctions.
- Iran’s oil minister Mohsen Paknejad resigns for personal reasons.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday that military action could not end the war with the United States, as efforts to reach a diplomatic settlement remained deadlocked and the standoff over the Strait of Hormuz continued.
Araghchi warned that Tehran would respond with greater force if its adversaries returned to military confrontation, but said negotiations offered the only path towards ending the conflict.
“If our enemies again choose the path of military confrontation, our response will be stronger than before, and we will defend ourselves with even more force,” Araghchi said at a gathering of foreign ambassadors.
“There is no military solution, nor any solution based on new sanctions,” he added, saying “only negotiations based on justice and fairness” could end the conflict.
The comments came after weeks of heavy US and Israeli bombardment failed to bring a decisive end to the war, which began in late February. Washington has scaled back military operations in recent weeks while increasing economic pressure on Tehran.
The main dispute between the two sides now centres on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for Gulf oil and gas. Iran has sought to restrict shipping through the waterway since the start of the war, attacking vessels attempting to transit without its authorisation.
The United States has responded with a counterblockade of Iranian ports and has struck vessels it says violated the blockade.
Britain’s maritime security agency UKMTO said on Sunday that a tanker in the Hormuz had “reported being struck by an unknown projectile, causing damage to the engine room”. The crew was safe, and no environmental impact was reported. The agency did not identify the vessel’s origin or destination, say when the incident occurred or establish whether it was an oil tanker or LNG carrier.
The latest maritime incident came as Tehran and Washington remained at odds over a possible diplomatic settlement. Iranian and US officials held indirect talks on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly last week, with Tehran presenting seven conditions for reopening the strait.
Iran has demanded a ceasefire across the Middle East, the unfreezing of Iranian assets abroad, the lifting of sanctions on its oil sector and an end to the US naval blockade, among other conditions.
US President Donald Trump rejected the proposal but left open the possibility of further negotiations or renewed military action.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Sunday that Washington had conveyed its response through intermediaries and that Tehran was reviewing it.
“The Americans, through intermediaries, have also conveyed their views on this proposal, and these views are currently being examined inside the country through the relevant channels and procedures,” he told reporters, according to state news agency IRNA.
“Whenever the final position of the Islamic Republic of Iran is ready, appropriate steps will be taken accordingly. At the same time, the Islamic Republic of Iran is also preparing itself for any other possible scenario.”
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said the latest US counterproposal was “in line with their previous proposals concerning nuclear issues”.
“We have clearly indicated that we are focusing on the issue of the Strait of Hormuz,” he said, adding that reopening the waterway required “an end to the disruptions to Iranian commercial maritime traffic and the lifting of sanctions”.
The United States and Israel have said their military campaign is aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, an objective Tehran has long denied pursuing. But the focus of the conflict has increasingly shifted towards the reopening of Hormuz, whose closure has shaken global energy markets.
The United States has not struck Iran since September 1 but has recently increased its military presence in the region.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad resigned on Sunday for what the president’s office described as personal reasons, with Hamid Bovard, chief executive of the National Iranian Oil Company, appointed as acting minister.
State television reported that Paknejad had offered his resignation some time ago because of “personal issues”. President Masoud Pezeshkian had initially asked him to remain in his post but accepted his departure after the minister insisted on leaving.
The resignation comes as Washington maintains a blockade on Iranian oil exports and the country’s economy remains under pressure from the war and sanctions.
