Iran rules out talks with US until its conditions are met

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Major General Mohsen Rezaei has rejected US President Donald Trump’s latest offer of talks, saying Tehran will not negotiate until Washington meets its conditions and warning that the situation around oil and regional waterways has changed. In a post on X on Monday night, Rezaei said Trump’s conflicting statements should not distract from what he described as the “new realities” surrounding oil and the straits. “Don’t get distracted by the US president’s mixed signals — from ‘no negotiations’ to ‘we’re ready to talk, ’” Rezaei wrote. “The stakes around oil and the straits have changed. Damage control won’t stop what’s coming. ” “No talks until Iran’s conditions are met. Period! ” he added. His remarks came hours after Trump said on Truth Social that Iran “wants to make a deal, quickly and badly” and that he would decide whether Washington would engage with Tehran, while saying the US was open to the idea. Trump’s latest comments appeared to contrast with his earlier statements. In August, he said there were no talks or scheduled discussions with Iran and maintained that the US naval blockade remained in force, while claiming the Strait of Hormuz was open and operating. On the same day, however, Trump’s son-in-law and envoy Jared Kushner said contacts with Iran were “probably more robust than it’s maybe ever been”. Trump has also alternated between threatening to retain Iran’s oil, saying Tehran was repeatedly calling for negotiations and suggesting that the conflict could end after the US midterm elections. Iranian officials have dismissed such statements as propaganda and an attempt by Washington to mask its failure to impose its will in the Persian Gulf. Rezaei, a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has repeatedly said the Strait of Hormuz remains closed and under Iranian control. He has said any change in the situation would depend on the United States ending the war and blockade, releasing Iran’s frozen assets and agreeing to a region-wide ceasefire covering Lebanon and Gaza. Tehran has maintained that diplomacy without firm guarantees would be a trap, particularly after Washington withdrew from commitments under the Islamabad memorandum of understanding. Iranian officials have said trust must be rebuilt through concrete actions rather than contradictory statements from Washington. Rezaei’s latest remarks reinforced Tehran’s position that negotiations will remain off the table until its conditions are fully met.

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