Cleric says targeting US interests forms part of Iran's new strategy

Tasnim, a news agency affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, cited informed sources as saying Washington told Tehran through Qatari mediators that it no longer required changes sought by the United States to a proposed text.

According to the report, efforts by US President Donald Trump to alter the Islamic Republic's position through military pressure, diplomatic threats and Qatari mediation failed, with Tehran rejecting the latest proposed changes.

Tasnim also quoted the sources as saying the 14-point text remains under review by relevant institutions in the Islamic Republic and that speculation over the outcome of the negotiations is not "credible" until that process is complete.

New details of a reported 14-point draft understanding between Iran and the United States have been published by Mehr News, which cited a source close to the Iranian negotiating team.

According to the report, the draft includes the following provisions:

1. A permanent and immediate halt to fighting on all fronts, including Lebanon.

2. A US commitment not to interfere in Iran's internal affairs and to respect the sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

3. The full lifting of the naval blockade within 30 days.

4. A US commitment to withdraw its forces from areas surrounding Iran.

5. The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz within 30 days under arrangements set by Iran.

6. The suspension of sanctions on Iran's oil sales, petrochemical products and derivatives, along with full Iranian access to the resulting financial resources.

7. A requirement for the United States and its allies to present plans for Iran's reconstruction worth at least $300 billion.

8. A 60-day negotiating period aimed at reaching a final agreement covering nuclear issues and the complete removal of US primary and secondary sanctions, as well as United Nations Security Council and International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Governors resolutions.

9. A reiteration of Iran's commitment under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty not to produce nuclear weapons.

10. During the negotiation period, the United States would not deploy additional forces to the region or impose new sanctions.

11. The release of $24 billion in blocked Iranian funds during the 60-day negotiation period, with half of that amount to be made available to Iran before negotiations begin.

12. The establishment of a monitoring mechanism to implement the agreement.

13. Approval of the final agreement through a United Nations Security Council resolution.

14. Final negotiations would not begin before the release of half of Iran's blocked funds, the suspension of Iran's oil sanctions and the lifting of the naval blockade. The final agreement would focus exclusively on the fate of enriched material and enrichment activities, sanctions relief and plans to rebuild Iran's economy. Discussions regarding Iran's missile program and support for resistance groups would be definitively excluded from the agenda.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei has said the text still requires review and finalization by the relevant authorities in Iran.

Iran has shown it will not compromise on its core principles or allow the "Axis of Resistance" to be sacrificed, an Iranian lawmaker said, citing Tehran's military action against Israel in support of Lebanon.

"The Islamic Republic will not allow the 'Axis of Resistance' to be sacrificed, and by attacking Israel in support of Lebanon, it showed that it does not bargain over its values," Fathollah Tavassoli, a member of parliament, said on Friday.

A member of Iran’s parliament National Security and Foreign Policy Committee denied any split between the Islamic Republic’s military and diplomatic decision-makers, saying both sides take orders from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.

Mansour Haghighatpour said Western countries were hoping to hear signs of division among Iranian officials, but argued that military and diplomatic actors operate under the same command.

“Both Majid the precision-striker (IRGC Aerospace Force commander Brigadier General Majid Mousavi) and Mohammad-Bagher the negotiator (Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf) take orders from one commander named Mojtaba Khamenei,” Haghighatpour said. “So in response to the West’s wish to hear the sound of discord and division among the system’s officials and functionaries, one must say: dream on.”

Haghighatpour also described the Foreign Ministry’s support for the IRGC’s Sunday night military operation as evidence of coordination between the military and diplomatic arms of the Islamic Republic.

He said the battlefield and diplomacy are “two wings” of the system and operate under the command of the commander-in-chief.

Hours after threatening to hit Iran “very hard,” President Donald Trump said a deal with Tehran was close, leaving Iranian officials to balance threats of retaliation with signals that talks over Hormuz, sanctions relief and a fragile ceasefire are still alive.

The sudden shift followed a volatile day in which US forces were reportedly hours away from launching new strikes inside Iran before Trump called off the operation and said the two sides had reached what he described as a “great deal.”

Reports by Axios, Politico and other outlets said the emerging memorandum of understanding would immediately reopen the Strait of Hormuz without tolls, lift the US blockade, extend the ceasefire for 60 days, including in Lebanon, and leave detailed nuclear negotiations for a second stage.

The agreement has not been formally signed. Axios reported that it still needed final approval, while Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Tehran had not reached a final decision. Al Arabiya reported that Iran had conveyed approval of a draft through Qatari mediators.

The latest diplomatic push came after a sharp escalation in rhetoric. Trump had earlier threatened new strikes against Iran and suggested the United States could eventually take control of Kharg Island and other parts of Iran’s oil infrastructure.

For Tehran, the public response has mixed defiance with pressure tactics.

Ali Abdollahi, commander of Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, warned that attacks on Iran’s energy infrastructure could threaten exports across the region.

“Either oil and gas exports will remain available for everyone, or they will be possible for no one,” he said, adding that Iran would respond more forcefully if US attacks continued and that “the fire of war could spread further.”

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