Key Points
- Iran was already in talks with the United States in February when the US and Israel attacked the country.
- Iran has said it needs the release of some of its frozen assets before engaging in substantive talks on its nuclear program.
Iran's chief negotiator warned overnight that the United States was not to be trusted, saying his government would not agree to any deal with Washington unless it fully secured Iranian rights.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf's remarks came as reports emerged that US President Donald Trump had sent a tougher peace proposal back to Iran, and underlined the rift that the parties still need to close.
Any tweaks to the draft could further delay an agreement to formally end the Middle East war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz after weeks of fraught negotiations marked by sharp rhetoric and occasional flare-ups of violence.
Iran was already in talks with the United States about its nuclear program in February when the US and Israel launched air and missile strikes that wiped out much of the country's senior leadership. Iran was also in negotiations with the US in June 2025 when the US attacked its nuclear facilities.
Iran has long insisted that its nuclear program is for purely civilian ends, while the United States and its allies claim it aims to develop a weapon.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
US media outlets — The New York Times and Axios — reported on Sunday AEST that Trump had sent back a "tougher" new framework for Iran to consider, though details remain unclear.
Trump has said his priorities include stopping Iran from developing any nuclear weapons and reopening the Hormuz shipping lane, which Iran has blockaded since the war began.
"The one guarantee that I have to have is that there will be no nuclear weapons. They've agreed to that, and it was very interesting," he told his daughter-in-law Lara Trump in an interview on her show on US broadcaster Fox News.
Iran, however, has previously cast doubt on Trump's assertions and the sides remain far apart on key issues.
"We will not approve any agreement until we are certain that the rights of the Iranian people have been upheld," Ghalibaf said in a video broadcast.
According to the Tasnim news agency, exchanges on the text "are ongoing, with both parties regularly proposing amendments".
Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi, meanwhile, said that "until a clear conclusion is reached ... everything that is being said now is speculation", according to Iranian media.
Iran has said it needs the release of US$12 billion ($16.7 billion) in frozen assets before engaging in substantive talks on its nuclear program, dismissing earlier Trump comments that its enriched uranium stockpile would be destroyed as "baseless".
Donald Trump under pressure to secure a deal
One of Washington's stated war aims was the destruction of Iran's ballistic missile program, with general Dan Caine — the top US military officer — estimating in April that more than 80 per cent of its missile facilities had been struck.
But CNN reported overnight that an analysis of satellite imagery showed Tehran has since been able to excavate 50 out of 69 tunnel entrances hit by US strikes at 18 underground missile sites.
Though daily strikes throughout Iran and the Gulf halted after Tehran and Washington agreed to a temporary ceasefire in April, there have been sporadic attacks.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards had shot down a US military drone "about to enter Iranian territorial waters", Iranian broadcaster IRIB reported, though Washington has not confirmed the incident.
Trump is under pressure to secure a deal that would lift competing US and Iranian blockades around the Strait of Hormuz that have strangled a vital route for global oil supplies.
After Trump said Iran would charge "no tolls" on ships passing through the strait under any deal, Iranian news agency Fars cited sources saying "no such clause" existed.
Iran's ISNA news agency on Saturday quoted politician Alireza Salimi as saying a plan for Iranian "management and sovereignty" over the strait — including imposing "administrative fees" — would soon go before parliament.
'Dramatic shift' in Lebanon front
Iran has insisted that any peace deal include Lebanon, where fierce fighting continues, with the Lebanese government accusing Israel of pursuing a "scorched-earth policy" as it expands operations against Hezbollah.
A truce between Israel and Hezbollah formally began on 17 April but it has never been observed, with both sides accusing each other of violating it.
The UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting on Tuesday AEST on the widening Israeli offensive following its capture of the medieval castle of Beaufort, also known as Qalaat al-Chakif, diplomatic sources told Agence France-Presse.
The meeting was requested by France, whose President Emmanuel Macron said "nothing justifies the major escalation underway in south Lebanon", calling for an end to fighting "for good".
Smoke billowed from the surrounding area on Sunday as the Israeli flag was seen above the castle, which Israel used as a base during their previous two-decade occupation.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the retaking of Beaufort "a dramatic shift".
Hezbollah politician Hassan Fadlallah said the castle "was not a military site", adding that the raising of the Israeli flag there "should provoke the feelings of every loyal patriot".
For the latest from SBS News, download our app and subscribe to our newsletter.
