US President Donald Trump has said that US is open to 20-year suspension of Iran’s nuclear programme if Tehran’s commitment is ‘real’. US President said he would accept Iran suspending its nuclear weapons programme for 20 years, as long as its commitment is “real”, according to Al Jazeera.
Earlier, Trump, speaking to reporters, said that the US agreed to a ceasefire with Iran “as a favour to Pakistan”.
He maintained that “we really did the ceasefire at the request of other nations, I would not have been in favour of it”. “We did it as a favour to Pakistan, they are terrific people, the field marshal, the prime minister.”
Trump also says Xi “feels strongly“ that Iran can’t have nuclear weapons and wants Iran to open up the Strait of Hormuz. He made the comments while speaking to reporters.
Trump rejects latest Iran proposal, calls first sentence 'unacceptable'. When asked if he had rejected Iran’s latest proposal, US President Donald Trump has replied in the affirmative. “I looked at it, and if I don’t like the first sentence, I just throw it away,” he tells reporters on Air Force One. Asked what the first sentence of the rejected proposal was, Trump says it was “unacceptable”. “If they have any nuclear of any form, I don’t read the rest of it,” he states.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei says Iran’s “courageous resistance” has made the country better prepared to confront the US, Al Jazeera reports. In a statement to mark National Persian Language Preservation Day and commemorate the poet Ferdowsi, Khamenei says Iran “has demonstrated during the recent Sacred Defence (against the US-Zionist invasion) that Ferdowsi’s legendary tales are a reality of their lives and a reflection of their heroic character”.
He adds that the “valiant, Quranic concepts” in Ferdowsi’s epic poem Shahnameh “unite all Iranian ethnicities and social strata in preserving their identity, independence and in the battle against the ‘Zahhak-like’ aggressors”, referring to the personification of evil in Iranian mythology.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that the dialogue process is facing a “difficult phase” due to US behaviour and Pakistan’s mediatory efforts have not yet collapsed, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
Abbas Araghchi said his government had received messages from the United States indicating that President Donald Trump's administration was open to continuing talks aimed at ending the Middle East war.
"What was said that the United States rejected Iran's proposal or Iran's response to the American proposal was a few days ago, when Mr Trump tweeted and said that it was unacceptable," Araghchi told reporters in the Indian capital.
"But after that we received messages again from the Americans saying that they are willing to continue the talks and continue the interaction."
Responding to a question, Araghchi said he was open to any support, including from China, to help resolve conflict in the Middle East. "We appreciate any country who has the ability to help, particularly China," he told reporters in New Delhi, where he attended a meeting of the BRICS bloc of nations.
"We have very good relations with China, we are strategic partners to each other, and we know that (the) Chinese have a good intention, so anything that can be done by them to help diplomacy would be welcomed by the Islamic republic."
- Israeli strikes -
Israel's army said it has launched strikes on Hezbollah sites in Tyre area of south Lebanon.
The military told residents of five villages earlier to immediately leave ahead of the expected attacks, despite a shaky ceasefire.
- Oil rises -
Oil prices were rising again as another weekend approached with no prospect of a return to normal oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, with the price well over the symbolic $100 a barrel.
- China: war 'should not have happened' -
China called for a lasting truce in the Middle East and for shipping lanes to be reopened "as soon as possible".
"There is no point in continuing this conflict, which should not have happened in the first place," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
- Israel soldier killed -
Israel's military said one of its soldiers had died in combat in southern Lebanon, bringing its losses to 20 personnel since the war with Hezbollah began in early March.
- Trump softens on Iran uranium -
US President Donald Trump suggested that hunting down Iran's enriched uranium was primarily for political optics, after Israel demanded it as a goal in the Mideast war.
"I just feel better if I got it, actually, but it's -- I think, it's more for public relations than it is for anything else," Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity.
- Iran must make deal: Trump -
In the same interview, Trump told Hannity he was running out of patience to reach a truce with Iran as peace talks have stalled.
"I'm not going to be much more patient... They should make a deal. Any sane person would make a deal, but they might be crazy," Trump said.
- Israel-Lebanon talks 'positive' -
A US official said talks in Washington between Israel and Lebanon about an expiring ceasefire were "positive" and would continue into a second day.
"We had a full day of productive and positive talks that lasted from 9 am to 5 pm," a senior State Department official said. "We look forward to continuing this tomorrow (Friday) and hope to have more to share then."
- IMF downbeat -
The International Monetary Fund warned that continuing disruptions caused by the Iran war meant its global economic outlook was moving towards an "adverse" scenario, with growth pared down and greater risks to inflation.
Last month, the multilateral lender's World Economic Outlook predicted global growth would drop to 3.1 percent in 2026 in its "reference" scenario, but warned of a bleaker outlook if the war were to drag on.
In the "adverse" scenario, where oil prices remain higher for longer, inflation expectations become less stable and financial conditions tighten, growth would slow to 2.5 percent, the Fund said at the time.