US sent Tehran 15-point plan aimed at ending war on Iran — report

The United States has sent Iran a 15-point plan to end the war in the Middle East, according to officials briefed on the diplomacy, signalling efforts to find an off-ramp as the war enters its fourth week, according to a report by The New York Times.

The proposal has been delivered via Pakistan, whose army chief has emerged as a key interlocutor between Washington and Tehran, officials said.

Tehran recently denied holding any talks with the US, despite President Donald Trump claiming that talks are progressing, but it remains unclear how widely the plan has been shared among Iranian officials or whether Tehran is likely to accept it as a basis for negotiations.

It is also unclear whether Israel is on board with the proposal.

Officials said the plan addresses Iran's ballistic missile and nuclear programmes, as well as maritime routes.

Since the start of the war, the Strait of Hormuz has effectively been blocked to most Western ships, disrupting global supplies of oil and natural gas and pushing prices higher.

Intensive plan

An Israeli media report revealed the details of a plan submitted by the US to Iran aimed at ending the war after Trump said Washington and Tehran had reached 15 "major points of agreements."

It includes the dismantling of all existing Iranian nuclear capabilities and a commitment that Iran will never pursue a nuclear weapon, Israel's Channel 12 reported.

There would be no production of weapons-grade nuclear material on Iranian soil and all enriched material would be handed over to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) within an agreed timeline, it said.

Iran’s Natanz, Isfahan and Fordow nuclear sites would be decommissioned and destroyed, and the IAEA would get full access to all information in regard to Iran’s nuclear programme, the report said.

In addition, the Strait of Hormuz will remain open and a free maritime zone and "no one will block it."

A decision on Iran's missile programme will be made later, but ranges and numbers "will need to be limited," the report added, noting that Iran will be able to use the missiles "only for self-defence purposes" in the future.

In return, all sanctions on Iran will be lifted, the report said, adding the country will also receive assistance in developing a civilian nuclear project in Bushehr.

The removal of the “snapback threat" is also included among the points of the agreement, the report said, referring to the imminent, automatic reimposition of United Nations sanctions on Iran by the E3 countries — Britain, France and Germany.

Israel and the United States have targeted Iran's s nuclear infrastructure, military and civilian areas in a war that began on February 28, while Iran has continued to fire missiles at Israel and neighbouring Arab countries.

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Source: TRT