Latest news with #USproposals
Asharq Al-Awsat
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Salam: Disarming Militias is a Lebanese Need Not Just a Foreign Demand
A much-anticipated meeting between Lebanon's Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam ended without a decisive outcome on a response to a set of US proposals, one of which reportedly includes a demand for Hezbollah to disarm. However, Salam described the talks as 'positive,' signaling continued dialogue with Berri once he receives the group's official position. Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat by phone, Salam said the pair discussed the ideas put forward by US presidential envoy Tom Perriello. Salam stressed the importance of implementing understandings brokered by the United States and France last November to halt hostilities along the southern border. 'This requires Israel to withdraw from Lebanese territory and to cease its aggression that threatens stability. In parallel, the Lebanese state must fulfill its duty and assert its sovereign authority across all its land. That includes the exclusive right to bear arms and to decide on matters of war and peace,' he said. He argued that the measures should not be subject to debate over sequencing. 'All of them should be implemented as swiftly as possible.' Salam said Lebanon needs a 'mechanism' to execute these commitments and that once it becomes clearer through ongoing contacts, it will be presented to the cabinet for approval. 'Only the Council of Ministers can take such a decision,' he said. He confirmed that he would meet Berri again soon and remains in constant communication with the president to reach the necessary consensus. Berri, he noted, is also awaiting Hezbollah's feedback on key aspects of the US paper. 'We are engaging constructively with the American ideas,' Salam added. 'They're not scripture — we will debate them with the envoy in hopes of reaching the desired outcomes.' He underscored that issues of sovereignty and the state's monopoly over arms are 'urgent Lebanese needs before being foreign demands. Lebanon deserves to be a normal state — one governed by peace, stability, and the rule of law, where the state alone defends its citizens and makes national decisions.' Salam briefed Berri on his recent trip to Qatar and developments related to a US proposal aimed at de-escalating cross-border tensions, during talks that also addressed mounting Israeli violations in the south, including an airstrike on Nabatieh. In a statement following the meeting, the Speaker's office said the two leaders reviewed political and security developments in Lebanon and the wider region, particularly in light of Israel's continued breaches of the ceasefire agreement. Salam's visit came amid growing momentum for a possible cabinet session to finalize a framework that would enshrine the state's exclusive control over weapons. The meeting followed a working session held Friday at the presidential palace between President Joseph Aoun and Salam to advance discussions on the US-backed proposal. If Berri, Aoun, and Salam reach consensus on the draft, the document is expected to be presented to the cabinet for approval. It reportedly consists of three main pillars: the issue of Hezbollah's arms and all non-state weapons, a package of structural reforms, and the future of Lebanese-Syrian relations. Once approved, the paper would be relayed to the US envoy to deliver to both Israel and Syria. In what appeared to be a message of political de-escalation, Hezbollah sent conciliatory signals to the Lebanese state over the weekend. Sheikh Mohammed Yazbek, head of the group's religious authority, urged the government to fulfill its commitments to 'liberate every inch of land, rebuild, and stand by its people.' 'Our hand is extended,' Yazbek said. 'We want to live as one, and for Lebanon to serve as a model of coexistence among its diverse communities.' He insisted Hezbollah acts 'with awareness and wisdom' and does not rush into decisions. 'Despite all the hostile media and distortion campaigns, our call remains one for national and human unity under God.' Yazbek also warned that Israel 'has no security and no peace,' adding, 'We haven't slept, and we will not sleep.' Meanwhile, MP Hussein al-Hajj Hassan, head of the Baalbek-Hermel parliamentary bloc, called on the Lebanese state to intensify its stance against what he described as Israel's blatant aggression. 'The government must push harder, and urge the international sponsors and the Quintet Committee to step up their roles. But we believe the American side is neither neutral nor impartial — it is complicit in the aggression,' he said. Hajj Hassan described the Israeli airstrikes on Nabatieh and other areas as 'an attack on all of Lebanon, not just a specific faction or region,' aimed at pressuring the country and its resistance forces.
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Iran on brink of rejecting US proposal on nuclear programme
Iran is on the brink of rejecting US proposals on the future of its nuclear programme after the US draft insisted that Tehran would have to suspend the enrichment of uranium inside Iran and set out no clear route map for lifting US economic sanctions. The US proposals were the first in written form since five rounds of indirect talks started, but Iranian diplomatic sources said the US proposals gave no ground on Iran's demand to continue to enrich uranium inside the country. 'Iran is drafting a negative response to the US proposal, which could be interpreted as a rejection of the US offer,' a senior Iranian diplomat told Reuters. The US proposal for a new nuclear deal was presented to Iran on Saturday by the Omani foreign minister, Sayyid Badr Albusaidi, who was on a short visit to Tehran and has been mediating talks between Tehran and Washington. A complete breakdown in the talks would trigger European moves to impose heavier UN sanctions on Iran and a possible joint US-Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear sites. That could see Iran in turn launch reprisals. Faced by such a catastrophe, Iran is likely to temper its response to the US plans so that further talks are possible. The best compromise available would be a US statement that Iran in principle is permitted to enrich uranium but in practice will not do so, at least inside Iran, for an indefinite period. The US has said it would allow Iran to join a Middle East consortium to enrich uranium, in conjunction with Saudi Arabia, but this could not take place on Iranian soil. A regional consortium for a civil nuclear program would require huge trust between the countries involved and continued external inspection. At one point it seemed that Donald Trump would allow Iranian enrichment at low levels so long as US inspectors – not just UN teams – were given access to Iran's nuclear sites, but that solution seems to be fading. But on Monday evening, the US president said Iran would not be allowed to enrich any uranium under a possible nuclear deal. 'Under our potential Agreement – WE WILL NOT ALLOW ANY ENRICHMENT OF URANIUM!' Trump said on social media, in response to a report in the Axios news outlet that said his administration's offer would let Tehran enrich some of the nuclear fuel. Speaking on a visit to Cairo, the Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi revealed little about the progress of the talks, but said Iran would be replying to the US proposals shortly. Iran did suspend enrichment for two years from November 2003, but in 2005 it rejected the European plan to use imported low-enriched nuclear fuel for its reactors. In Egypt Araghchi met Raphael Grossi, the director of the UN nuclear inspectorate the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), expressing his displeasure at a draft IAEA report prepared for the agency's next board meeting that highlights how Iran has continued to enrich uranium at high levels of purity contrary to the agreement the nation signed in 2015. France, Germany and the UK intend to use the report to press for a board vote leading to UN sanctions being reimposed in September. The Iranians claim the draft IAEA report contains nothing surprising or new, but accuse the west of pressurising the inspectorate to develop an increasingly propagandistic tone. The report found that Iran carried out secret nuclear activities with material not declared to the UN nuclear watchdog at three locations that have long been under investigation. Araghchi said: 'western pressures should not affect the IAEA and the IAEA must maintain its independent and technical identity. Some countries want to put pressure on Iran through the IAEA, and we hope that the IAEA will not fall into this trap.' He added: 'Iran's enrichment is completely peaceful and a scientific achievement that we have achieved through our scientists. The Iranian nation has paid heavy prices to achieve this achievement, and the blood of a number of our nuclear scientists has been shed for this issue. 'If the goal of the negotiations is to ensure that Iran does not seek to obtain nuclear weapons, we can reach an agreement in this regard, but if unacceptable and unrealistic goals are pursued in this regard and the goal is to deprive Iran of peaceful nuclear activities, there will definitely be no agreement.' Ebrahim Azizi, the head of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy commission, said: 'If a proposal is based on ignoring the principle of enrichment, it is not at all presentable, not acceptable, not admissible, not worthy of attention, and not negotiable.'
The Guardian
02-06-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Iran on brink of rejecting US proposal on nuclear programme
Iran is on the brink of rejecting US proposals on the future of its nuclear programme after the US draft insisted that Tehran would have to suspend the enrichment of uranium inside Iran and set out no clear route map for lifting US economic sanctions. The US proposals were the first in written form since five rounds of indirect talks started, but Iranian diplomatic sources said the US proposals gave no ground on Iran's demand to continue to enrich uranium inside the country. 'Iran is drafting a negative response to the US proposal, which could be interpreted as a rejection of the US offer,' a senior Iranian diplomat told Reuters. The US proposal for a new nuclear deal was presented to Iran on Saturday by Omani foreign minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi, who was on a short visit to Tehran and has been mediating talks between Tehran and Washington. A complete breakdown in the talks would trigger European moves to impose heavier UN sanctions on Iran and a possible joint US-Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear sites, a move that could see Iran in turn launch reprisals. Faced by such a catastrophe, Iran is likely to try to temper its response to the US plans so that further talks are possible. The best compromise available would a US statement that Iran in principle is permitted to enrich uranium but in practice will not do so, at least inside Iran, for an indefinite period. The US has said it would allow Iran to join a Middle East consortium to enrich uranium, in conjunction with Saudi Arabia, but this could not take place on Iranian soil. A regional consortium for a civil nuclear program would require huge trust between the countries involved and continued external inspection. At one point it seemed that Donald Trump would allow Iranian enrichment at low levels so long as US inspectors – not just UN teams – were given access to Iran's nuclear sites, but that solution seems to be fading. Speaking on a visit to Cairo, the Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi revealed little about the progress of the talks, but said Iran would be replying to the US proposals shortly. Iran did suspend enrichment for two years from November 2003, but in 2005 it rejected the European plan to use imported low-enriched nuclear fuel for its reactors. In Egypt Araghchi met with Raphael Grossi, the director of the UN nuclear inspectorate the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), expressing his displeasure at a draft IAEA report prepared for the agency's next board meeting that highlights how Iran has continued to enrich uranium at high levels of purity contrary to the agreement the nation signed in 2015. France, Germany and the UK intend to use the report to press for a board vote leading to UN sanctions being reimposed in September. The Iranians claim the draft IAEA report contains nothing surprising or new, but accuse the west of pressurising the inspectorate to develop an increasingly propagandistic tone. The report found that Iran carried out secret nuclear activities with material not declared to the UN nuclear watchdog at three locations that have long been under investigation. Araghchi said: 'Western pressures should not affect the IAEA and the IAEA must maintain its independent and technical identity. Some countries want to put pressure on Iran through the IAEA, and we hope that the IAEA will not fall into this trap.' He added: 'Iran's enrichment is completely peaceful and a scientific achievement that we have achieved through our scientists. The Iranian nation has paid heavy prices to achieve this achievement, and the blood of a number of our nuclear scientists has been shed for this issue. 'If the goal of the negotiations is to ensure that Iran does not seek to obtain nuclear weapons, we can reach an agreement in this regard, but if unacceptable and unrealistic goals are pursued in this regard and the goal is to deprive Iran of peaceful nuclear activities, there will definitely be no agreement.' Ebrahim Azizi, the head of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy commission, said: 'If a proposal is based on ignoring the principle of enrichment, it is not at all presentable, not acceptable, not admissible, not worthy of attention, and not negotiable.'
