SAINT PETERSBURG: Iran's top diplomat blamed Washington on Monday for the failure of Middle East peace talks during a visit to Russia, where President Vladimir Putin promised him Moscow's support in bringing the war to a close. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was in Saint Petersburg on the fourth leg of a whirlwind diplomatic tour, having sandwiched a trip to Oman in between two visits to main mediator Pakistan over the past few days. Islamabad played host to the first and only round of unsuccessful talks between Washington and Tehran, and Araghchi's visit had fanned hopes for fresh negotiations over the weekend, until US President Donald Trump scrapped a planned trip by his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
"The US approaches caused the previous round of negotiations, despite progress, to fail to reach its goals because of the excessive demands," Araghchi said on Monday. After nixing his emissaries' trip, Trump told Fox News that if Iran wanted talks, "they can call us" — though he has said the cancellation does not signal a return to hostilities. Following his meeting with Araghchi, Putin voiced his commitment to the two countries' "strategic relationship", telling the visiting diplomat: "For our part, we will do everything that serves your interests, the interests of all the people of the region, so that peace can be achieved as soon as possible."
In a sign that back-channel diplomatic efforts were ongoing, the Fars news agency said Iran had passed "written messages" to the Americans via Pakistan spelling out red lines, including nuclear issues and the Strait of Hormuz. Fars news agency said the messages were not part of formal negotiations, however.
US media outlet Axios — citing a US official and two other sources with knowledge of the matter — reported on Sunday that Iran had sent a new proposal to end the war centred on reopening the Strait of Hormuz and ending a US naval blockade there, with nuclear negotiations postponed for a later stage. Iranian state news agency IRNA cited the report without denying it. Trump was expected to hold a meeting with his top national security advisers on Monday to discuss the stalled talks and how to proceed, Axios and ABC news reported.
GLOBAL ISSUE
The ceasefire in the US-Israeli war with Iran has so far held, but its economic shock waves have continued to reverberate globally. Iran has blockaded Hormuz, cutting off flows of oil, gas and fertiliser and sending prices soaring. In response, the US has imposed a blockade of Iranian ports in the waterway and beyond. Trump is facing domestic pressure to find an off-ramp as fuel prices rise, with midterm elections due in November and polls showing the war is unpopular among Americans.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards, however, have said they have no intention of lifting their market-rattling blockade. Ebrahim Azizi, head of the national security commission in Iran's parliament, told state television on Monday that a proposed law for managing the strait would make the Islamic republic's armed forces the overseeing authority, with financial gains from the waterway to be paid in Iranian rial.
Oil prices rose and stock markets were mostly lower on Monday as peace talks between the US and Iran stalled, ahead of a week full of central bank decisions and corporate earnings. Both main international oil contracts were up over one per cent with Brent crude holding above $100 a barrel as the crucial Strait of Hormuz waterway remained largely closed, though lingering hopes that a deal can eventually be reached tempered gains.
Wall Street's main indices dipped at the open but the Dow quickly edged higher and S&P 500 both steadied. The Nasdaq edged off its record close.
In Europe, London dipped but Frankfurt and Paris were higher in afternoon trading. Asian stock markets were mixed on Monday, as Tokyo and Seoul were buoyed by a tech rally, while Hong Kong slipped. "It may be that hopes of a diplomatic breakthrough were pretty faint to start with, and markets are now in wait-and-see territory ahead of a heavy week of earnings and economic touchpoints," said Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown.
With energy prices remaining high, the US Federal Reserve is expected to keep interest rates unchanged on Wednesday, followed by similar decisions from the European Central Bank and Bank of England. "There's no expectations of rate cuts from any of these central banks," said Trade Nation analyst David Morrison. "But analysts will be paying very close attention to comments made, particularly those to do with inflation," he added. — AFP
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