Mediation efforts resume to bring Iran, US back to negotiating table
Mediation efforts have reportedly continued to bring Iran and the United States back to the negotiating table as a recent lull in fighting has revived hopes of a return to talks after nearly two weeks of exchange of fire between the two sides.
According to AP, a regional official involved in the mediation efforts said that concerted diplomacy was underway and that a pause in US strikes and Iranian counterstrikes on neighboring countries hosting American forces was a “positive signal that helps their efforts to de-escalate.”
The official said that both the US and Iran want to return to the interim ceasefire deal and that a compromise, which is being negotiated now, centers around having Iran run vessel transit through the Strait of Hormuz with fewer restrictions on ships. The official was not authorized to discuss the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Iran said on Sunday it has halted retaliatory attacks against US after Washington stopped its strikes on the country for the past two nights.
"These attacks continued until two nights ago, but over the past two nights the Americans have stopped their attacks," said Army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia on Sunday.
"Since... our strategy has essentially been retaliatory, we have also halted our retaliatory operations."
The Iranian declaration came after reports emerged that concerns over dwindling US munitions were restraining plans for further escalation.
But the recent lull has revived hopes of a return to negotiations after nearly two weeks of consecutive nightly US bombardments and Iran’s retaliatory attacks, although US media reported the pause could also reflect pressure on stockpiles of Patriot interceptors and other defensive weapons.
Plans to escalate the campaign have been shelved in part because of those shrinking supplies, The New York Times reported, citing two people briefed on the matter.
Trump also faces the risk of a wider war, the estrangement of vulnerable Persian Gulf allies and further shocks to the global economy, the newspaper said.
Vice President JD Vance and top US general Dan Caine both raised concerns about escalation at a White House meeting on Friday, CNN reported.
Iran's Army warned on Sunday that the war would widen even further if the US chose to restart its attacks, ahead of a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington on Tuesday.
Trump said on Friday he had not decided whether to return to an all-out operation.
"We're talking to them right now. I think they're getting more and more serious," he told journalists.