Iran Calls US Outreach a Positive Step but Sets Conditions for Talks

Iran has described a diplomatic overture from the United States as a “positive step” but says it sees no need to meet American officials for now, keeping the Iran Hormuz talks in a holding pattern. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi made the remarks on Saturday, reacting to a letter from US Vice President JD Vance.

Araghchi said Tehran wants sanctions imposed after the Islamabad memorandum lifted, a smaller US military presence in the region, and recognition of a Strait of Hormuz shipping route that Iran says it agreed with Oman. Reports also say Iran is seeking restored oil waivers and the release of frozen funds. He said Iran will decide whether any future talks are direct or indirect only after Washington accepts its conditions.

Qatari mediators met Iranian officials in Tehran on Friday, and an Iranian delegation was in Doha on Saturday as the Iran Hormuz talks continued through intermediaries. Pakistan is also involved. Nuclear proposals are being treated as a later phase, while Washington wants the nuclear issue raised at the start. According to Axios, mediators want progress before the US midterm elections on Tuesday, amid concern that military action could resume afterwards.

President Donald Trump said the Vance letter was meant to help Iran obtain medical supplies, not to restart broader peace talks. He has also said the conflict will end “very soon” and has threatened further strikes. Iran’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, warned that any new US or Israeli attack would draw an immediate response.

Shipping in the Gulf remains tense. The Revolutionary Guards say tankers have been hit by mines or stopped after ignoring warnings, a claim the US military rejects. Araghchi said Iran’s plan is the only proposal now on the table in the Iran Hormuz talks to reopen the strait.

Source: Yahoo News and HNGN reports, 31 October 2026