Iran weighs peace proposal, accuses US of 'excessive demands'

Tehran accused the United States of "excessive demands", Iranian media said on Saturday, as reports in the US raised the prospect that Washington was mulling new strikes and leaders of the Islamic republic considered the latest peace proposal.

Pakistan's army chief arrived in Tehran on Friday to bolster mediation and US President Donald Trump abruptly changed his plans, skipping his son's wedding to stay in Washington due to "circumstances pertaining to government", fueling speculation that the situation had entered a sensitive stage.

Trump has described the stop-start negotiations this week as teetering on the "borderline" between renewed attacks and a deal to end the conflict, which began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28 and led to competing blockades around the Strait of Hormuz that have roiled the global economy.

Weeks of negotiations since an April 8 ceasefire - including historic face-to-face talks hosted by Islamabad - have still not produced a permanent resolution or restored full access to the strait, choking vast quantities of global oil supply.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a call with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that Tehran was engaged in the diplomatic process despite "repeated betrayals of diplomacy and military aggression against Iran, along with contradictory positions and repeated excessive demands" by the US, according to the ministry.

Diplomacy over Iran steps up

US media outlets reported the White House was considering strikes on Iran. US officials have repeatedly raised the prospect of renewed action against Iran if a deal was not reached, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying at a NATO conference in Sweden there had been "some progress" towards a peaceful resolution.

Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir landed in Tehran on Friday where he met with Araghchi to discuss "the latest diplomatic efforts and initiatives aimed at preventing further escalation."

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei cautioned that the visit did not mean "we have reached a turning point or a decisive situation" with "deep and extensive" disagreements remaining, according to Iran's ISNA news agency.

Baqaei said a delegation from Qatar had also held talks with the Iranian foreign minister on Friday.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar - who have played a crucial role in mediation between the warring sides - flew to China, Iran's top trading partner, for a four-day visit in which efforts to resolve the Middle East crisis were expected to be discussed. 

Hormuz squeeze

Baqaei said the status of the Strait of Hormuz and a retaliatory US blockade of Iranian ports were also under discussion. 

The future of the strategic maritime chokepoint remains a key sticking point, with fears growing that the global economy will suffer as pre-war oil stockpiles run down.

Markets nevertheless took some comfort from the signs of diplomacy, with Wall Street rising Friday and the Dow closing at a second straight record high. 

Oil prices also rose, however, underscoring fears that disruption in Hormuz will keep feeding inflation. US consumer sentiment fell to its lowest level since records began in 1952, with high prices eroding household finances.

EU nations on Friday deemed Iran's blockade "contrary to international law" and made a technical change to expand the scope of its existing Iran sanctions regime to target individuals involved in the closure.

Lebanon front

Iran's foreign ministry spokesman also stressed fighting would need to stop in Lebanon where Israel and Tehran-backed Hezbollah have been clashing despite a ceasefire.

Lebanon's National News Agency said Israel conducted five airstrikes in the east of the country near the Syrian border. Since an April 17 truce, Israel has continued its attacks, demolitions and evacuation orders in south Lebanon, saying it is targeting Hezbollah, which has also kept up its strikes.

Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the war on March 2 with rocket fire at Israel after Iran's supreme leader was killed by US-Israeli strikes.

Lebanon's health ministry said Israeli attacks have killed at least 3,111 people in Lebanon since March 2, adding that strikes on the south on Friday killed 10 people, including a child.