US, Iran set to hold separate talks with mediators

[NEW YORK] Qatari mediators are expected to hold separate talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in New York and with the US side on Monday or Tuesday, an official briefed on the negotiations told Reuters.

The talks are expected to focus on an amended version of a seven-day proposal that Iran presented last week on the sidelines of the the United Nations General Assembly, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Araqchi remains in New York after attending the General Assembly. It was not immediately clear who would represent the US side in the talks with mediators.

Iran’s seven-day plan envisages an end to all hostilities in Iran and Lebanon, the unfreezing of billions of dollars worth of Iranian assets, an end to sanctions on Iranian oil and the lifting of the US blockade on Iranian ports.

Teheran would then allow the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and the two sides would also resume talks on Iran’s nuclear programme.

US President Donald Trump said on Saturday he had rejected Iran’s proposal, saying Teheran wanted a swift agreement because of the crippling economic pressure it is under.

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However, he also told Axios on Sunday that he expected US negotiators to engage in further talks this week.

Araqchi said on Sunday that mediators had not formally conveyed a US rejection to Teheran and that Iran was awaiting Washington’s definitive position before deciding its next steps.

“Our conditions are clear, and any move toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz is contingent on these conditions being met,” he said on Sunday, adding that only a negotiated solution could resolve the impasse. REUTERS