Iran, US exchange messages through Pakistan on deal framework

Iranian sources said early on Friday that messages are still being exchanged between Iran and the United States, with Pakistan acting as mediator, in an effort to reach a framework for an agreement between the two sides.

Iran’s ISNA news agency said on its Telegram account that Iranian-American talks are continuing through Pakistani mediation via the exchange of messages and texts aimed at reaching a framework for an agreement. It added that “the latest news indicates that consultations on the few remaining differences have not yet been settled.”

Pakistan’s minister stays in Tehran

The agency said Pakistan’s interior minister will remain in Tehran on Friday to continue consultations and meet Iranian officials. At the same time, it quoted Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei as saying that “the focus at this stage is on ending the war on all fronts, including Lebanon,” according to Tasnim news agency.

Baghaei also said that “claims about nuclear issues, including the issue of enriched materials or the matter of enrichment, are nothing but media speculation; the precise announcement of the details of the negotiations is made through the relevant official officials.”

Comments from Iranian advisers

In parallel, the agency quoted Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, as saying that “our differences with the United States will be resolved when Washington is certain that we have reached a level of strength that makes it unable to take any action against us,” he said.

Ali Akbar Velayati, the supreme leader’s adviser for international affairs, said, according to the agency, that “Washington will no longer have a foothold in the West Asia region and will ultimately be forced to leave the region.”

A separate Iranian source said: “We have not reached an agreement with America yet, but the gaps have narrowed.”