Pakistan makes new Iran peace proposal to US

Iranian media says U.S. offers temporary exemption from oil restrictionsIran has made a new peace offer to the United States with terms that appear to be similar to those previously rejected by Washington, although senior Iranian officials told Reuters on Monday that the United States had softened its stance on some issues.A Pakistani source confirmed that Islamabad, which has been passing messages between the two sides in West Asia’s war since hosting the only round of peace talks last month, has shared its latest offer with Washington. But sources say progress has been difficult. Pakistani sources said both sides were “constantly moving the goalposts”, adding: “We don’t have much time.”Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei confirmed that Tehran’s views had been “conveyed to the US side through Pakistan” but gave no details. There was no immediate comment from Washington.As described by senior Iranian sources, Iran’s proposal is similar in many ways to previous Iranian proposals, which U.S. President Donald Trump rejected last week as “junk.” It will focus first on ensuring an end to the war, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and the lifting of maritime sanctions. Controversial issues surrounding Iran’s nuclear program and uranium enrichment will be postponed to later rounds of talks, sources said.However, Washington’s stance has softened significantly, with senior Iranian sources saying the United States has agreed to release a quarter of Iran’s frozen funds held in foreign banks, totaling tens of billions of dollars. Iranian sources also said Washington has shown greater flexibility in agreeing to allow Iran to continue some peaceful nuclear activities. Iran’s Tasnim News Agency also quoted an unnamed source as saying that the United States has agreed to waive oil sanctions on Iran while negotiations are ongoing. Iranian officials did not immediately comment on Tasnim’s report, and a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity said the report was false.Reuters