'Unreasonable and unrealistic demands': Iran rejects second round of peace talks, accuses US of violating ceasefire

After United States President Donald Trump declared that a second round of peace negotiations would begin on Monday in Pakistan, Iran clearly stated that they would not participate in upcoming talks.

This statement comes days before the fragile ceasefire between Iran and United States is set to expire. Moreover, US blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz and its recent attack and seizure of an Iranian vessel that was trying to evade it has once again increased tensions between the two countries.

State broadcaster IRIB on Sunday cited Iranian sources as saying "there are currently no plans to participate in the next round of Iran-US talks".

Iran’s central military HQ released a statement, "The US violated the ceasefire and carried out maritime piracy by firing on an Iranian commercial vessel in the Gulf of Oman, disabling its navigation system, and landing armed personnel on board. Iran will respond soon."

Iran firmly stated that lifting the US blockade was a precondition for negotiations with an  anonymous sources saying "the overall atmosphere cannot be assessed as very positive"

“Iran stated that its absence from the second round of talks stemmed from what it called Washington’s excessive demands, unrealistic expectations, constant shifts in stance, repeated contradictions, and the continuing naval blockade, which it considers a breach of the ceasefire,” Iran’s official IRNA news agency wrote.

State-run IRNA meanwhile pointed to the blockade and Washington's "unreasonable and unrealistic demands", saying that "in these circumstances, there is no clear prospect of fruitful negotiations".

Iran's military spokesperson Ebrahim Zolfaghari also said that Iran has officially rejected all peace negotiations with the United States and that the Strait of Hormuz is closed again.

Despite the uncertainty, Islamabad witnessed heightened security across the Pakistan capital in anticipation of the negotiations.

The US president said his negotiators, whom he did not name, would arrive in the Pakistani capital on Monday evening.

A White House official said the delegation would be led by Vice President JD Vance and include Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner.

A major issue in the negotiations has been Iran's stockpile of near-weapons-grade enriched uranium.