TEHRAN(National Times)- Esmaeil Baqaei, Iran\u2019s foreign ministry spokesperson, said on Monday that there was \u201cno such thing as a 60-day deadline\u201d under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Iran\u2019s semi-official outlet ISNA said Baqaei made the remarks when asked about the timeframe mentioned in negotiations with Washington during a press briefing. The remarks also came as the 60-day window expired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere is no such thing as a 60-day deadline in the text of the MoU, and the Islamic Republic of Iran never formulates its policies under pressure, ultimatums or time constraints,\u201d Baghaei was quoted as saying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAll decisions are made solely based on evaluations of national interests and national security. What was anticipated in the MoU was merely a 60-day window for talks on two axes \u2014 sanctions relief and the nuclear issue \u2014 which could be extended if no result was reached,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDue to the blatant and widespread violation of the June 18 MoU by the US just a few weeks after its signing, no talks were initiated, and consequently, the issue of the 60-day period completely lost its relevance,\u201d ISNA quoted him as saying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe primary focus of the entire country is on managing current affairs, while simultaneously the armed forces are closely monitoring all movements with full vigilance,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The MoU between the US and Iran was signed on June 18 after weeks of intensive diplomacy. It was aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz and ending the Middle East conflict \u2014 which began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran in February \u2014 after a further 60 days of negotiations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, renewed hostilities erupted on July 7, when Iran attacked commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, including a Qatari liquefied natural gas tanker, accusing the US of violating the understanding. The attack prompted multiple waves of US strikes on Iranian military targets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The conflict also spread to new fronts, with the Houthi rebels in Yemen imposing a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia, extending the war to a second major shipping chokepoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Iran considers missing pilots to be prisoners in Qatar<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Baqaei also said that Iran will consider three missing pilots to be prisoners in Qatar, despite Doha\u2019s denials, until it clarifies their fate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tehran has said the Iranians went missing while carrying out an operation against the United States\u2019 Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar on March 2, shortly after the outbreak of the Middle East war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Saturday, Iranian authorities alleged for the first time that the pilots had been captured in Qatar, after previously saying one pilot had been killed and three others were missing following their sortie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt is imperative to obtain clarification on their situation,\u201d Baqaei said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cUntil the pilots\u2019 situation is clarified, we consider them prisoners and will spare no effort to shed light on their fate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Qatar denies holding the pilots and said an invitation had been sent to Iran \u201cto be briefed on the details of the search and rescue operations in April, but the Iranian side has yet to respond\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
TEHRAN(National Times)- Esmaeil Baqaei, Iran\u2019s foreign ministry spokesperson, said on Monday that there was \u201cno such thing as a 60-day deadline\u201d under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the United States. Iran\u2019s semi-official outlet ISNA said Baqaei made the remarks when asked about the timeframe mentioned in negotiations with Washington during a press briefing. The remarks also came […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":131390,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-131389","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest_news","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n