Iran says conditions to re-engage in talks, end war sent to US via Qatar

What Happened

In an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera on Saturday, Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said Tehran has conveyed a formal set of conditions to Washington through Qatari mediators to end the war with the United States. Rezaei stated the conditions are an end to the war on all fronts, the release of Iran’s frozen funds, and an end to the naval blockade, adding, “We are awaiting President [Donald] Trump’s response.” He said Qatar and Pakistan have been working as mediators to re-establish negotiations since the US-Iran memorandum of understanding expired last month. According to Al Jazeera’s reporting, the war began when the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran in late February, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Rezaei said Iran’s military planning has shifted since two earlier rounds of conflict and is now focused on US naval assets from the Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, with targets beyond that range, toward the Indian Ocean, outside Iran’s reach. He said Iran recently test-fired a multi-warhead antiship missile near a US vessel or aircraft carrier, and that any future Iranian response would be heavy, encompassing US bases in the region as well as US commercial interests and companies operating locally. Rezaei rejected US accusations that Iran struck an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, saying Iran acted only after US strikes on Bandar Abbas and an Iranian surveillance platform there. On nuclear issues, Rezaei said Tehran has not decided to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty despite grounds to do so, that Iran continues to honor a fatwa from former Supreme Leader Ruhollah Khomeini prohibiting nuclear weapons, and that its doctrine remains unchanged, though further sanctions or a UN Security Council referral could change that. He denied Iranian involvement in Yemen’s war, said Iran is ready to mediate but does not exploit the conflict, and dismissed speculation that Tehran could close the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, calling it a Yemeni matter tied to the Houthi movement. Rezaei said a Strait of Hormuz agreement with Oman had come within “a short step” of being announced before being shelved and remains ready but may require regional endorsement.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

Rezaei’s interview lays out Iran’s public terms for ending a direct US-Iran war while simultaneously signaling preparations for escalation against US naval assets and commercial interests across the Gulf, Gulf of Oman, and Arabian Sea. The conditions — ending the war, releasing frozen funds, and lifting the naval blockade — reveal Tehran’s core negotiating demands, while the threat to target US bases and companies indicates the conflict could widen beyond military-to-military exchanges. The nuclear dimension, including a possible NPT withdrawal linked to sanctions or UN Security Council referral, and the unresolved status of the Strait of Hormuz agreement with Oman, make this a pivotal moment for Gulf security and non-proliferation diplomacy.

Watch For

A formal response from the Trump administration through Qatari or Pakistani mediators, including whether Washington treats the conditions as a basis for negotiation or rejects them. Monitor for renewed US or Israeli strikes on Iran, which Rezaei called “very much on the cards,” and any further Iranian test-firing of multi-warhead antiship missiles or attacks on US naval or commercial targets. Watch for UN Security Council action on Iran’s nuclear file, potential Iranian moves on the Strait of Hormuz agreement with Oman, and Houthi conduct around Bab al-Mandeb as a test of Iran’s claimed non-involvement in Yemen.