Iran’s chief negotiator said Sunday that Tehran does not trust the U.S. and will not accept any agreement unless it fully secures Iranian rights, as negotiations continue over a potential deal to end the conflict, state media reported.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf's remarks came as reports emerged that President Donald Trump had sent a tougher peace proposal back to Iran and underlined the rift that the parties still need to close.
Any further tweaks to the draft could further delay an agreement to formally end the Middle East war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz after weeks of fraught negotiations marked by sharp rhetoric and occasional flare-ups of violence.
Iran was already in negotiations with the United States about the fate of its nuclear program in February, when the U.S. and Israel launched air and missile strikes that killed much of the Islamic Republic's senior leadership.
And, while Tehran has long insisted that its nuclear program is for purely civilian ends, the United States and its Western allies have long suspected it aims to develop a weapon.
