Iran says contradictory US positions, Israeli attacks on Lebanon delaying diplomacy
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DUBAI – Iran on June 1 blamed the slow pace of efforts to end its war with the United States and Israel on a lack of trust, contradictory positions from Washington and continued Israeli attacks in the region.
“Negotiations have started amid severe suspicion and mistrust, and the exchange of messages is taking place in this atmosphere,” Esmaeil Baghaei, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, said, adding that Iran and the US had yet to reach a final conclusion.
“The other party is constantly changing its views and putting forward new or contradictory demands. It is natural that this situation will prolong negotiations,” he said.
Baghaei said that, if contradictory messages were part of a US negotiating tactic, they would not work with Iran.
But if these reflected disarray within the US administration, he said, Washington should reach a clear and definitive position as soon as possible.
Baghaei said Tehran views Israeli actions in the region, including in Lebanon, as inseparable from those of the US, adding that any agreement to end the regional conflict would have to include implementation of the Lebanon ceasefire.
His comments on Lebanon followed an order by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the Israeli military to resume strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold known as Dahiyeh.
Baghaei added there had not yet been any negotiations over the details of the nuclear file, and said Tehran is pursuing its core demand for the release of its frozen funds.
He accused the US of violating the ceasefire through attacks on Iran’s southern provinces, saying such conduct deepened mistrust and entitled Iran to take reciprocal defensive measures under the principle of self-defence.
The US said it struck Iranian military sites at the weekend, and Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on June 1 it targeted a US base in Kuwait in response.
“Learn from the past and do not let the US and Israel use your capabilities against Iran,” Baghaei warned regional countries. REUTERS
