Donald Trump has accused Iran of derailing efforts to end the war by sending a peace proposal with “no relationship” to the deal being discussed between the two countries.
The US president said Tehran was “dying to sign a deal” even as both sides appeared to have reached an impasse on key issues, including the abandonment of Iran’s nuclear programme.
“They scream all the time,” he told Fortune ahead of his trip to China last week. “I can tell you one thing – they’re dying to sign [a deal]. But they make a deal, and then they send you a paper that has no relationship to the deal you made. I say, ‘Are you people crazy?’”
The comments, published on Monday, came as Iran said it had shared a revised peace offer with Pakistan, insisting it was keen to end the conflict despite reports of fresh strikes in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. Tehran has not claimed direct responsibility for the attacks.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters that the US had rejected their 14-point proposal before later suggesting amendments through Pakistan. Iran then relayed its position on Sunday night.
Baghaei said that Iran’s right to enrich uranium was “non-negotiable” and demanded Washington lift sanctions as part of a deal, according to state media.
While mediated talks are ongoing, he said, Iran remains ready to defend itself against any “reckless action” and the Iranian military still has “surprises” in store if tested.
A Pakistani source said Islamabad has handed the latest Iranian offer to the United States, assessing that both sides were getting in the way of progress towards ending the war, now in its third month.
“We don’t have much time,” the source told Reuters, when asked if it would take time to close gaps, adding that both countries “keep changing their goalposts”.
With no tangible progress towards ending the conflict, Trump is expected to meet top national security advisers on Tuesday to discuss options for military action regarding Iran, Axios reported.
The President said in a post on Truth Social on Sunday: “For Iran, the Clock is Ticking, and they better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!”
A spokesperson for the Iranian armed forces, Abolfazl Shekarchi, said that if Trump’s threats were carried out, the US would “face new, aggressive, and surprise scenarios, and sink into a self-made quagmire”.
The fragile status quo came under renewed pressure on Sunday as a drone strike caused a fire at a nuclear power plant in Abu Dhabi, according to local officials.
The drone hit an electrical generator outside the inner perimeter of the Barakah nuclear power plant, the Abu Dhabi Media Office said, adding that radiological safety levels were unaffected and there were no injuries.
Emirati officials said they were investigating the source of the strike and that the UAE had the full right to respond to “terrorist attacks”. The defence ministry said two other drones had been dealt with.
Mohsen Rezaei, a former commander of the IRGC and secretary of Tehran’s expediency council, warned the UAE against becoming “entangled in Israel’s plots and schemes” following the strike.
He said that Iran has not “closed the door to friendship” with the UAE, but they “should know that Iran’s patience has limits”, according to Iran’s ISNA news agency.
Iran stepped up attacks on the UAE earlier this month after Trump announced a naval mission to try to open the Strait of Hormuz, which Trump suspended after 48 hours.
