Iran defends two-day proposal for peace talks after US rejects conditions

DUBAI: Iran defended a proposal on Monday to restart peace talks in as ​few as two days as the ‌most reasonable offer on the table, after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called some of ​Iran’s conditions “outrageous and ridiculous”.

“Is it unreasonable that ​Iran demands that US illegal sanctions ⁠and its naval blockade must be lifted ​before negotiations start and that the war should ​end on all fronts?” Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei told a weekly press conference in response to ​Rubio’s remarks.

Iran has made the offer ​to shorten the time to restart talks from an ‌earlier ⁠seven-day proposal, which calls for Washington to first meet conditions including halting hostilities, lifting a blockade and waiving sanctions.

Baghaei also said US ​pressure on ​Iraq to close ⁠most of its borders with Iran should not affect bilateral ties ​with Baghdad, after Iraq’s foreign minister ​said ⁠Washington was pushing for such a move.

Baghaei dismissed a US military task force aimed ⁠at ​restricting Iran’s land trade as ​a diversion following President Donald Trump’s Republicans’ losses in ​midterm elections.