Iran, US not discussing ceasefire extension, senior Iranian official says

DUBAI: There were no discussions between Iran and the United States to extend their ceasefire because, ​from Tehran’s perspective, the deal had no start date ‌and therefore had nothing to extend, a senior Iranian source told Reuters on Wednesday.

The source’s comments came after Turkey’s Anadolu news agency, citing Pakistani government ​sources, reported on Wednesday that Tehran and Washington had agreed ​to extend a 60-day ceasefire under their interim deal signed ⁠in June.

The deal declared an “immediate and permanent termination of military ​operations on all fronts”, but quickly unravelled, with US President Donald Trump ​saying it was “over” on July 7 and Iran’s foreign ministry declaring it “suspended” a week later.

“There is no talk of an extension because, from Iran’s perspective, there is ​no period that began and therefore nothing to extend. The ​United States violated the interim agreement 48 hours after it was reached and ‌withdrew ⁠from it a few days later,” the source told Reuters.

In the agreement, the 60-day period refers to an extendable timeframe within which Iran and the US were expected to reach a final deal ​limiting Tehran’s nuclear ​programme and lifting ⁠US sanctions.

A series of requirements, such as a ceasefire in Lebanon, free navigation in the Gulf ​and waivers for Iran to sell its oil, were ​viewed ⁠as necessary before entering the further negotiation period.

“One of the issues that is being discussed via mediators is the US returning to the ⁠interim ​agreement and defining a timeframe for implementing ​the commitments. There has been absolutely no progress on this issue,” the source added.