Hopes for a pause in the fighting rose after US President Donald Trump transmitted a 15-point ceasefire framework to Tehran, but Iran dismissed Washington’s outreach and set out its own conditions for any halt to hostilities.
Sent through intermediaries, the US outline offers a time-limited cessation in return for sweeping limits on Iran’s nuclear and missile programmes and other strategic concessions, together with staged sanctions relief and economic incentives. Multiple reports reviewed by The Tribune say the plan would demand Iran permanently renounce any nuclear weapons ambitions, accept tight caps on uranium enrichment, dismantle key nuclear facilities, curb its ballistic missile capacity and end support for regional groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
The proposal also seeks guarantees that shipping through the Strait of Hormuz would not be disrupted. In exchange, Washington would offer phased relief from US and international sanctions and back assistance for a civilian nuclear programme under international supervision. Diplomats described the package as a reworked version of earlier proposals that collapsed in past escalations, with little change to the core US demands.
Tehran, however, responded cautiously and insisted any ceasefire must meet its own terms. Reports say Iran has demanded an immediate stop to military operations, legal guarantees against future US attacks and compensation for war damage. It has explicitly ruled out negotiating on its missile programme, calling those capabilities central to national defence.
An Iranian government official told state broadcaster Press TV that “Iran will end the war when it decides to do so and when its own conditions are met,” adding that Tehran would continue to defend itself and could inflict “heavy blows” until its demands were satisfied. The official compared the US offer to two earlier rounds of talks in spring and winter 2025, which Tehran described as deceptive, saying the United States had shown no genuine intent to negotiate before later using military force.
One report said Iran’s initial response was routed to Pakistan for delivery to Washington.
The exchanges came as the US stepped back from a 48-hour ultimatum to strike Iranian power infrastructure after warnings of retaliation from Tehran. At the White House, Trump said negotiations were ongoing and suggested “the other side would like to make a deal,” naming senior officials involved. In an unusual remark he said Iran had offered a “very big” oil- and gas-related “present,” without elaborating: “They did something yesterday that was amazing… a tremendous amount of money.” He added a planned US strike on a major Iranian power facility was put on hold “based on the fact that we are negotiating.”
Trump also asserted US military dominance, claiming American forces were operating freely over Tehran and that much of Iran’s air-defence capability had been neutralised, and he said Iran had agreed not to pursue nuclear weapons — a claim with no independent confirmation.
Despite these tentative signals, a wide gulf remains between Washington’s demands and Tehran’s conditions, leaving prospects for de-escalation uncertain while global markets and governments watch every sign of a possible ceasefire.
