Iran continues to review a U.S. response to its proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and will reply through intermediaries once the review is complete, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Monday.
Baghaei also told a press conference that Iran continues to exchange messages via intermediaries, without elaborating. Qatar and Pakistan, among others, have acted as mediators in efforts to end the war that began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28.
"The exchange of messages between Iran and the U.S. through mediators continues," Baghaei said.
"We are reviewing the Americans’ proposals for negotiations. Iran’s preconditions must be observed for any negotiations," he added.
After a June interim cease-fire crumbled and on-off strikes resumed, Iran presented its proposal in mid-September and later confirmed receipt of a U.S. response.
However, the process has since stalled, with Iran’s security chief saying Sunday that Washington’s response did not sufficiently address Tehran’s seven conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and returning to negotiations.
A central point of disagreement has been Washington’s insistence on addressing Iran's nuclear program from the outset.
Tehran says negotiations should initially focus on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which before the war carried about a fifth of the global trade in oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) and restoring security in the waterway.
Baqhaei added that Russia also continues to play a "constructive" role regarding Iran’s nuclear file, pointing to Moscow’s involvement in the 2015 nuclear agreement.
He said Iranian and Russian relations are based on mutual trust and that Tehran welcomes supportive efforts by friendly countries, but stressed that, "technically and precisely," mediation between Iran and the U.S. remains in the hands of countries such as Pakistan and Qatar.
Hormuz leverage
Turning to the Strait of Hormuz, Baqhaei said developments there were a direct consequence of U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran and rejected suggestions that Tehran’s actions were intended to create negotiating leverage.
"What we have seen in the Strait of Hormuz since Feb. 28 was the direct result of the U.S. and the Israeli regime's attack on Iran," he said.
"With the current U.S. approach, security will not return," he added.
Baqhaei rejected U.S. assertions that Iran had lost its leverage, saying such claims did not correspond with realities on the ground.
"They can say Iran has lost its leverage, but we are doing our work," he said, arguing that energy markets were not responding to Washington’s assertions.
'Deep concern'
Baqhaei also said that Iran was "deeply concerned" by escalating attacks between Yemen's Tehran-backed Houthis and Saudi Arabia, after 14 people died in two days of strikes on Riyadh's airport.
"We are deeply concerned about the developments taking place in the Arabian Peninsula," he said, adding that Tehran was ready "to help facilitate dialogue between the parties."
A Houthi strike on Riyadh's international airport on Sunday killed one person and wounded 11 others, a day after 13 died in the deadliest strike on Saudi soil in more than a decade.
"We absolutely do not want hostilities and war to continue between two Islamic countries," Baqhaei said, urging the parties to resolve the situation "through dialogue and engagement."
The Houthis are part of the Iran-backed "Axis of Resistance," a network of groups opposed to Israel that also includes Lebanon's Hezbollah and Iraqi Shiite armed groups.