Iran said Monday that no decision has yet been made whether to attend the second round of peace talks with the United States in Pakistan as the clerical regime accused Washington of violating the ceasefire by seizing its Touska cargo ship.
The country announced Sunday it wasn’t joining a second round of negotiations, blaming Washington’s “excessive demands” but the regime’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei wasn’t quite as emphatic.
“As of now… we have no plans for the next round of negotiation, and no decision has been made in this regard,” Baqaei told reporters hours later, according to the state’s Tasnim News Agency.
Baqaei accused Washington of violating the ceasefire after the vessel was seized, describing it as an “act of aggression.”
He claimed Iran had faced “bad faith” from the US, claiming Washington had betrayed diplomacy twice and carried out attacks against Iranian sovereignty.
“Iran will make the necessary decisions about the future path with careful consideration of its national interests,” Baqaei said.
The Touska ship was seized in the Gulf of Oman when it tried to break past the Navy’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
A CENTCOM video shared online by Reuters’ chief national security reporter showed the US Navy ship warning those aboard the Iranian cargo ship to vacate its engine room before firing multiple blasts.
“Motor vessel Touska, motor vessel Touska, vacate your engine room, vacate your engine room. We are prepared to subject you to disabling fire,” a Marine can be heard saying before the ship’s horn blows and blasts go off.
US negotiators are working to secure a peace deal before the fragile 10-day ceasefire expires Wednesday.
Vice President Vance is heading to Pakistan, alongside envoys Steve Witkoff and President Trump’s son in law, Jared Kushner, with the hope of striking a deal.
US negotiators held talks in Islamabad for 21 hours earlier this month, but no peace deal was reached.
Vance said a no-deal outcome was “bad news for Iran much more than it’s bad news for the United States of America.”
President Trump warned US forces may “have to start dropping bombs again” if there is no agreement as reported by NewsNation.
“But I think it’s going to happen,” he said.
Trump has repeated his threats to wipe out Iran’s energy infrastructure and bridges if no deal is reached.
“They’ll come down fast, they’ll come down easy and, if they don’t take the deal, it will be my honor to do what has to be done, which should have been done to Iran, by other Presidents for the last 47 years,” Trump wrote.
“IT’S TIME FOR THE IRAN KILLING MACHINE TO END!”
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has claimed his country is fighting a defensive war against the US and Israel.
“We are pacifists and what we are doing is legitimate self-defense,” he said, according to Press TV.
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