Iran will escalate if interim peace deal is not implemented, says officialInterim agreement struck in June quickly unravelledPresident Trump told Americans last week to accept higher gasoline prices<\/p>\n
DUBAI, Aug 17 (Reuters) – Iran has decided to shift its policy \u200bfrom defensive to “fully offensive” due to the deadlock in efforts to agree a permanent end to \u200cits war with the United States, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday.<\/p>\n
Progress towards peace talks and a resumption of oil tanker traffic through the strategic Strait of Hormuz has ground to a halt, with no sign that the warring parties are moving towards ending the \u200bconflict<\/a> that the U.S. and Israel launched on February 28.<\/p>\n Sign up here.<\/a><\/p>\n “Iranian entities must be prepared to escalate tensions \u200bin the Strait of Hormuz and wider region, as Iran will be ready to make \u2060decisions and take action on difficult decisions,” the Iranian official said, adding that Tehran would conduct a “timely and precise” \u200bmilitary attack to break the U.S. naval blockade if diplomacy failed.<\/p>\n Monday marked the day by which Iran and the United \u200bStates were expected to reach a final deal under a memorandum of understanding agreed in June and aimed at ending the war.<\/p>\n Signed on June 17, the MoU set out a 60-day timeframe, extendable by mutual consent, by which Washington and Tehran should reach an agreement that \u200bwould cover broader issues such as the fate of Iran’s nuclear programme.<\/p>\n The MoU, which declared the immediate and permanent \u200bcessation of military operations on all fronts, quickly unravelled, however, due to a dispute over control of the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n IRAN TO \u200cSET DEADLINE<\/p>\n Tehran \u2060said point 5 of the MoU gives it the right to manage the waterway, while Washington rejected that interpretation. Hostilities resumed as Tehran began firing on vessels it said were trying to sail through the waterway on an unapproved route.<\/p>\n U.S. President Donald Trump said on July 7 that the pact was “over”. Tehran has repeatedly accused Washington of consistently violating its \u200bcommitments.<\/p>\n “Within the short period of \u200ba few weeks set \u2060by Iran, all the agreement’s provisions must be implemented by the U.S. This is a precondition for further negotiations with the U.S.,” the Iranian official told Reuters, adding that mediators \u200bwould share Tehran’s deadline with Washington and regional states.<\/p>\n Both Iran and the United States \u200bhave stepped up \u2060rhetoric over the past week.<\/p>\n Trump warned Americans in a speech at a rally on Friday to prepare for continued high fuel prices as a result of the war, while also saying that “after we finish defeating Iran … pretty soon I’ll be declaring the \u2060Hormuz \u200bStrait a territory of the United States”.<\/p>\n Earlier on Monday, Trump posted on \u200bhis Truth Social platform: “The number one Goal is, and always will be, that Iran cannot have, in any way, shape, or form, a Nuclear Weapon”, \u200brepeating one of his stated rationales for the war.<\/p>\n Reporting by Parisa Hafezi; Writing by Alex Richardson; Editing by Hugh Lawson<\/p>\n Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab<\/a><\/p>\n