Iran says it continues exchanging messages with US, but conditions for talks are absent

Iran continues exchanging messages with the United States, but conditions for negotiations are currently absent, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said Sunday, accusing Washington of undermining diplomacy through its military actions.

In an interview with Austria’s ORF television, Baqaei said Iran’s immediate priority is defending its sovereignty rather than engaging in negotiations.

“We are exchanging messages, but our priority now is defending Iran’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and people,” he said.

He accused Washington of repeatedly undermining diplomacy, saying US actions had destroyed the conditions necessary for negotiations and violated previous understandings with Tehran.

He described recent US strikes as a continuation of an “illegal war” against Iran, arguing that they reflected Washington’s failure to honor its commitments.

On the Strait of Hormuz, Baqaei said Iran had fulfilled its responsibility to ensure the security of international shipping but would not allow the strategic waterway to become a platform for threatening the country’s national security.

He also blamed the US and Israel for escalating tensions in the region, saying their military actions had destabilized the security situation.

Turning to the 2015 nuclear deal, Baqaei said European countries had failed to honor their commitments following the US withdrawal from the agreement, adding that they “owe Iran a great debt” for abandoning their obligations.

Tensions between the US and Iran have intensified in recent weeks, with the US carrying out attacks on Iran and Tehran responding by targeting US military facilities and equipment in countries across the region, including Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait.

On July 8, US President Donald Trump declared a memorandum of understanding with Iran “over,” accusing Tehran of violating the agreement.

The announcement followed attacks on three tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and renewed disagreements over navigation rules in the strategic waterway.

Washington has called for unrestricted passage through the Strait of Hormuz, while Tehran insists that vessels transit through a channel near its coastline under a navigation mechanism administered by Iran.

Trump has directed the US military not to launch new strikes on Iran, ending nearly two weeks of daily attacks, the Axios news site reported Saturday, citing sources familiar with the decision.