Iran: ‘We are in a position of power’: Iran’s Pezeshkian seeks end to US war, claims victory

iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian has called for an end to the months-long war with the United States, saying Tehran stands in a position of strength and dignity even as diplomatic efforts remain stalled.“It is better that we end the war now, since we are in a position of power and dignity,” Pezeshkian said during a meeting with doctors on Friday, according to Al Jazeera.Pezeshkian said the world recognized what he described as Iran’s victory and accused the United States of attacking Iranian schools, hospitals and infrastructure.“The entire world recognizes our victory and emphasizes that the United States has attacked our schools, hospitals and infrastructure in violation of all regulations and is hated around the world,” he said.The Iranian president’s comments came days after a memorandum of understanding between Tehran and Washington expired, without clear progress in diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.

Pezeshkian defends US deal as Iran’s military warns of retaliation

Pezeshkian also defended the June memorandum of understanding with Washington against criticism from hardliners in the Iranian parliament, who had accused his administration of making concessions to the United States.“You cannot find a single clause in this agreement that indicates capitulation. All commitments concern the other party,” he said.However, Iran’s military leadership has continued to signal that it is prepared for new conflicts.Maj. Gen. Ali Abdollahi, chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces, was quoted by Iranian media as saying the country’s forces would respond to new threats.“With readiness on land, sea, air, air defense and cyberspace, Iran’s armed forces will respond to the enemy’s new threats with crushing, punishing and devastating responses,” Abdollahi said.IRGC chief Ahmad Vahidi also said Iran had created a “strong defensive shield” against threats and called the continuation of its “Defensive and Offensive Empowerment Strategy” the only “smart and efficient solution,” Al Jazeera reported.Meanwhile, the speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, acknowledged the pressure on the country’s economy.“No matter how much military power we have, we will not survive if people are hungry and we do not have financial turnover, economic growth and national production,” he said, according to Iran’s official news agency IRNA, cited by Reuters.

Oman, Iran discuss resuming talks as Hormuz remains flashpoint

The foreign ministers of Oman and Iran discussed ways to create conditions for resuming dialogue and negotiations during a phone call on Friday, according to Oman’s state news agency. They also discussed developments affecting shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, according to Al Jazeera.The waterway remains the center of the confrontation. Iran has kept the strait partially closed while the United States maintains a naval counterblockade.Traffic through the strait has been severely disrupted, with only four cargo ships crossing on Thursday and none of them large crude oil carriers or LNG tankers, according to ship tracking data.According to Reuters, the Strait of Hormuz handled about a fifth of the world’s oil and LNG supply before the war.U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the U.S. military had helped move a seven-day average of about 8 million barrels of oil a day through the waterway, down from more than 20 million barrels a day before the conflict.The speaker of Iran’s parliament has previously said Tehran would not reopen the strait until Washington meets commitments set out in a 14-point memorandum, including lifting the blockade, releasing frozen Iranian assets and easing oil sanctions.

Trump says Iran not ready for ‘right deal’

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said on Friday that Washington was watching developments in the conflict and suggested Tehran was unwilling to accept what it considered an appropriate deal.Asked if America’s military options against Iran were limited, Trump said: “It just means we’re watching what happens.”“We have full control of that entire region that has to do with the Strait of Hormuz, and that means it’s deep within it, the land areas. So, they would love to make a deal, but in my opinion they’re not ready to make the right deal,” Trump said.The comments came ahead of a planned announcement by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday on new sanctions against Iran. Bessent has said Washington would impose the “toughest sanctions in history” and sought China’s cooperation in increasing economic pressure on Tehran.China has rejected the approach and its Foreign Ministry has said “sanctions and pressure will not help solve the problem” and called for political and diplomatic efforts.Iran has also criticized the planned sanctions. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi described the campaign as a continuation of failed US pressure policies.“14 years ago: ‘The most devastating sanctions in history’. Failed. 8 years ago: ‘Maximum pressure’. Failed. 5 months ago: ‘Unconditional surrender’. Failed. Today: ‘The most crushing economic operation ever’. Doomed to fail. We’ve seen this movie before. Same bull. Different thugs,” Araghchi said in a post on X.Iran’s Foreign Ministry separately accused Washington’s planned measures of being “economic terrorism,” while a ministry spokesman described potential secondary sanctions as an assertion of “extraterritorial sovereignty” over independent U.N. member states.