Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has accused the US of opting for a “reckless military adventure” every time a “diplomatic solution is on the table”.
Iranians would “never bow to pressure”, Araghchi said in a post on X, a day after both sides accused each other of launching attacks in the Strait of Hormuz and as the US fired on more Iranian vessels.
“Is it a crude pressure tactic?,” his Iranian counterpart asked. “Or the result of a spoiler once again duping POTUS [US President Donald Trump] into another quagmire?”
Despite the clashes, Trump said the ceasefire was intact. It is meant to enable talks to end the war that the US and Israel launched in February.
Iran is expected to respond to US proposals on Friday, according to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
“I hope it’s a serious offer, I really do,” Rubio said during a visit to Italy.
Earlier, US and Iranian forces clashed in the Gulf, and the UAE came under renewed attack, endangering a month-old ceasefire and shaking hopes for a diplomatic solution to the crisis.
President Donald Trump said on Thursday three US Navy destroyers were attacked as they moved through the strait, a conduit for around a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas flows that Iran has all but closed since the conflict started.
Responding to a query on Project Freedom, Trump said that Pakistan asked the US “not to do it” during negotiations.
“Pakistan has been fantastic. Their leaders have been fantastic; the field marshal and the prime minister,” he said. “We’ll go back to it if we have to. They asked us not to do it during the negotiations,” he said.
Separately, Donald Trump announced a three-day ceasefire in the war between Russia and Ukraine, starting from today.