Daijiworld Media Network - Tehran
Tehran, Oct 29: Iran has yet to respond to a letter from US Vice President JD Vance seeking to explore the possibility of resuming negotiations between Washington and Tehran, Iranian news agency Tasnim reported on Thursday, amid the threat of renewed American military strikes.
Tasnim, which is affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), reported that Tehran had not yet sent a reply to Vance’s communication. The agency said Iran remained firm on its seven conditions for the United States, asserting that “any position that contradicts this framework is unacceptable”. However, it did not disclose the contents of the letter or indicate when Iran might respond.
The letter was first reported by The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday, with Axios and The New York Times subsequently providing further details. According to the reports, Vance sent the communication to Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and a former IRGC commander, in an effort to explore the resumption of peace negotiations.
The New York Times reported that the letter was delivered to Rezaei through Qatari mediators on Sunday, October 25. Vance reportedly proposed a meeting between American and Iranian officials and offered to lead the US delegation. An Iranian official familiar with the communication told the newspaper that the proposal had been received positively by Iran’s leadership, with a formal response expected by Thursday.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the letter was intended to determine whether Washington and Tehran could find common ground to restart negotiations rather than present a detailed peace agreement.
Axios, citing a US official, reported that Vance emphasised that any negotiations aimed at preventing further American military strikes would need to address Iran’s nuclear programme.
“The President was enthusiastic about the letter,” the US official told Axios, referring to US President Donald Trump’s approval of the diplomatic outreach.
Trump, however, played down the significance of the communication in public remarks on Wednesday, saying it concerned assistance for Iran in obtaining medical supplies.
“Basically, it’s getting supplies in to help people that are not well,” Trump told reporters, according to Axios. He also confirmed that Vance had sought his approval before contacting Tehran.