Iran Says It Forced Enemies to Seek Negotiations After 20 Days of War

Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said on Tuesday that Tehran's resistance had forced its enemies to "ask for negotiations," a stark reversal from what he described as initial demands for unconditional surrender.

Speaking at a press conference in Tehran, Araghchi said the U.S. president had written "unconditional surrender" at the start of the conflict. "That same enemy, after approximately 20 days, was then begging for negotiations," he said, adding that Iranian diplomacy had proven effective in defending the nation's rights.

The remarks come amid a public war of words over compensation and conditions for ending hostilities. On Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed Iran's demand for reparations for damage from U.S. and Israeli bombardment over the past five months, saying the issue had not been raised by Tehran's negotiators until now.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei had earlier stressed that Iran would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the U.S. meets its conditions. Tehran is seeking an end to the blockade of its ports, the lifting of economic sanctions, the release of frozen assets, and compensation for war damage.

Trump countered by demanding compensation from Iran for American deaths and injuries attributed to Iran-backed militants over several decades, citing incidents including the 1983 Beirut bombing that killed 241 U.S. military personnel and the deaths of at least 603 U.S. troops in Iraq between 2003 and 2011. He also said Tehran should compensate families of Iranian protesters who were killed, and instructed his representatives to include these demands in any future negotiations.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital conduit for roughly one-fifth of the world's traded oil before the war, has kept energy prices a central issue in U.S. politics ahead of November's midterm elections.