The regime is “facing serious challenges” in the aftermath of the five-week-long U.S.-Israeli strikes, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian admitted on Monday. Besides the decapitation of the regime’s leadership, Iran’s military-industrial infrastructure has been devastated by the operation Epic Fury, Pezeshkian confessed.
Sky News (UK) reported:
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has warned officials against painting a “false image” of the state of his country during the conflict with the US and Israel, according to the state news agency Mehr. (…)Pezeshkian said power plants, petrochemical industries and steel facilities have been targeted and that Iran “should not falsely claim that we have no problems and that the enemy is being destroyed”. (…)”We are also facing serious challenges.”
The damning admission from Pezeshkian comes as Iran refuses to yield in ongoing talks with the U.S., insisting instead that Washington make concessions to end the war.
Iran’s latest proposal, like the previous ones, demands retaining its nuclear program and gaining access to billions in frozen funds, Reuters reported Monday:
Iran sent a new peace proposal to the United States with terms that appeared similar to offers Washington has previously rejected, although a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday that the U.S. had softened positions on some issues.A Pakistani source confirmed that Islamabad, which has conveyed messages between the sides in the war in the Middle East since hosting the only round of peace talks last month, had shared the latest proposal with Washington. But the source suggested progress had been difficult. (…)Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei confirmed that Tehran’s views had been “conveyed to the American side through Pakistan” but gave no details. Washington did not immediately comment.The Iranian proposal, as described by the senior Iranian source, appeared similar in many respects to Iran’s previous offer, which U.S. President Donald Trump rejected last week as “garbage”.It would focus first on securing an end to the war, reopening the Strait of Hormuz – a major oil supply route that Iran has effectively blockaded – and lifting maritime sanctions. More contentious issues around Iran’s nuclear programme and uranium enrichment would be deferred to later rounds of talks, the source said.
The White House will likely reject the latest Iranian proposal as it offers nothing new, Axios reported:
Iran has given an updated proposal for a deal to end the war, but the White House believes it is not a meaningful improvement and is insufficient for a deal, a senior U.S. official and a source briefed on the issue told Axios.U.S. officials say President Trump wants a deal to end the war, but is considering resuming it due to Iran’s rejection of many of his demands and refusal to make meaningful concessions on its nuclear program.
President Trump on Monday afternoon announced that he had halted an impending U.S.-Israeli strike against Iran. He had done so to facilitate “serious negotiations are now taking place” between Washington and Tehran, he wrote on Truth Social.
Iran delivered its latest proposal a day after President Donald Trump announced that the time was running out for the regime to respond to his 14-point memorandum delivered some 12 days ago.
“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!” he wrote on Truth Social.
President Trump vowed to resume strikes “at a much higher level and intensity” if Iran rejects his proposal, which includes opening the Strait of Hormuz and dismantling its nuclear weapons program. Last week, he said that the ceasefire was on a “massive life support” following an initial Iranian response to his proposal.
Meanwhile, President Trump on Monday blasted mainstream news outlets like The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and CNN for siding with the Iranian regime and demeaning U.S. military achievements during the war.
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