The head of the Iranian negotiating team says Tehran will not engage with Washington in peace talks until the US abides by its commitments under the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said that current negotiations are focused on implementing the MOU, and not a peace deal to bring the war to a permanent end. “Dialogue is about those negotiations that have been concluded in the form of a memorandum of understanding,” he explained. “We followed up on the implementation of the first phase, that is, the first five clauses. Until these clauses are implemented, we will not enter the next stages at all.”

He added that the US was currently violating the MOU, and Washington should expect Tehran to respond. “We consider the events that are taking place in the Persian Gulf these nights to be a violation of the understanding to end the war, and we will definitely react to it, and naturally, the other side will react as well.”

The 14-point MOU was signed by the US and Iran in mid-July. Ghalibaf said that the US was failing to uphold its commitments under points 1, 4, 5, 10, and 11. The first point of the MOU calls for a ceasefire that expands to Lebanon. Israel has refused to stop attacking Lebanon and withdraw its forces. 

Points four and five are concerning the Strait of Hormuz. Ghalibaf said that the removal of the American blockade and the passage of ships through the Strait were the greatest achievements of the MOU. However, Tehran is demanding that the Strait of Hormuz be recognized as Iranian and Omani territory, and Iran be allowed to change fees for ships transiting the waterway. 

Secretary of State Marco Rubio says that the Strait must be recognized as an international waterway, which would prevent Tehran from imposing a shipping tax, 

Points 10 and 11 call for the removal of US sanctions and the unfreezing of Iranian assets. Tehran is demanding that the US release $6 billion in frozen Iranian funds. President Donald Trump said that the US will not release the money to Tehran, but Washington will use the funds to buy food for Iranians. Additionally, a US official told The New York Post that no Iranian funds will be unfrozen until Iran hits “benchmarks.”

Ghalibaf’s remarks suggest Iran is unwilling to move forward with peace discussions due to distrust of the US. “I have said many times that negotiation is a method of struggle,” he said. “Even now, when we are negotiating with America, we are not negotiating with a friend; we are negotiating with a malicious enemy who will definitely take action against us whenever he finds an opportunity.”

The US and Israel attacked Iran twice in the past year as Washington and Tehran were engaged in negotiations.