US President Donald Trump has reportedly cut short his stay at Camp David and returned to the White House on Saturday after Iran set seven conditions for resuming dialogue with the United States to end the ongoing conflict in the region.
Trump was originally scheduled to return on Sunday.
Earlier, Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, warned that Tehran is prepared for a “decisive war” if Washington rejects its demands.
He said Qatari mediators had conveyed Tehran’s conditions to Washington and that Iran was awaiting US President Donald Trump’s response.
“Our conditions are an end to the war on all fronts, the release of our frozen funds, and an end to the naval blockade,” Rezaei was quoted by Al Jazeera as saying.
“It is in Washington’s interest to accept these conditions. Trump’s threats will not achieve any results. We are prepared for a decisive war,” he added.
In a separate post on X, Rezaei confirmed that Tehran had presented seven conditions for beginning negotiations with the US government. He, however, did not spell out the seven conditions in the post.
“Tehran’s message is clear and unambiguous. If Washington wants to escape the quagmire it has created for itself and avoid becoming further entangled in it, it has no choice but to accept Iran’s rights and conditions,” he wrote.
Rezaei also told Al Jazeera that the possibility of another US strike was “very much on the cards,” based on Iranian military assessments. He said Tehran was prepared for such a scenario and that Iran’s military planning had changed following two earlier rounds of fighting.
The Iranian official further warned that any future response from Tehran could be extensive, potentially targeting US military bases across the region as well as American commercial interests and companies operating locally.
Iran’s conditions for resuming dialogue come amid heightened tensions in the region. Trump had earlier told Axios that he had a “big decision” coming over whether to resume large-scale attacks on Iran. He also claimed that Tehran remained in direct contact with Washington and wanted a deal.
Meanwhile, Russia Today reported that a US bomber had departed from a UK air base bound for West Asia. Iran’s Press TV also reported increased air-defence activity near the Kharab al-Jir base in Al-Hasakah, northeastern Syria.
There are also reports that the American administration is studying its options against the Houthis in Yemen after an attack on the Saudi capital Riyadh.
The US State Department has urged Americans in the region to exercise heightened vigilance. It has also advised US citizens outside the Middle East to seriously reconsider travel to and through the region.
