Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have said the United States is now faced with two options regarding Tehran — carrying out what they described as an “impossible” military operation or accepting a “bad deal” — after US President Donald Trump criticised Iran’s latest peace proposal.
Tensions remain unresolved despite an April 8 ceasefire brokered by Pakistan. Since then, direct negotiations between Washington and Tehran have remained stalled, with only one formal round of peace talks held in Islamabad.
According to Iranian news agencies Tasnim and Fars, Tehran submitted a 14-point peace proposal to Pakistan for mediation. Trump, however, quickly dismissed the proposal’s prospects, writing on Truth Social: “I will soon be reviewing the plan that Iran has just sent to us, but can’t imagine that it would be acceptable in that they have not yet paid a big enough price for what they have done to Humanity, and the World, over the last 47 years.”
Reports from Axios, citing informed sources, said the proposal includes a one-month negotiation timeline focused on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, ending the US naval blockade, and permanently ending conflict involving Iran and Lebanon.
Al Jazeera also reported that the plan is structured in three phases designed to turn the current ceasefire into a permanent peace agreement within 30 days.
The first phase reportedly calls for a nonaggression commitment, including guarantees from Israel, along with the phased reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the lifting of the US blockade on Iranian ports. Iran would also assume responsibility for clearing sea mines.
The second phase proposes Iran’s return to uranium enrichment at 3.6 per cent under a “zero-storage principle.” The plan rejects dismantling nuclear facilities and includes mutual commitments under which the US and Israel would avoid attacking Iran and its allies, while Tehran would refrain from launching strikes. It also outlines the gradual release of frozen Iranian funds through phased sanctions relief.
The final stage focuses on broader regional diplomacy, including strategic dialogue with Arab neighbours aimed at establishing a collective Middle East security framework.
In a statement released Sunday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Trump must choose between “an impossible operation or a bad deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran,” adding that “The room for US decision-making has narrowed.”
Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi echoed the message a day earlier, saying “the ball is in the United States’ court to choose the path of diplomacy or the continuation of a confrontational approach,” while stressing that Iran was “prepared for both paths.”
Speaking briefly to reporters in West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump declined to clarify what actions might provoke further US military measures.
“If they misbehave, if they do something bad, but right now, we’ll see,” he said. “But it’s a possibility that could happen, certainly.”
Meanwhile, Mohsen Rezaei, a military adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, warned that Iranian forces could target American naval assets, posting on X: “The US is the only pirate in the world that possesses aircraft carriers. Our ability to confront pirates is no less than our ability to sink warships. Prepare to face a graveyard of your carriers and forces.”
His remarks followed Trump’s comments at a Florida rally, where he described US maritime operations in strikingly blunt terms.
“We’re like pirates” as he described an earlier helicopter raid on an oil tanker under the US blockade of Iranian ports.
“We … landed on top of it, and we took over the ship. We took over the cargo, took over the oil. It’s a very profitable business,” he remarked.
Earlier this week, Axios reported that Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff had urged Tehran to bring its nuclear programme back into formal negotiations. Iran’s UN mission responded by accusing Washington of “hypocritical behaviour” over its criticism of Tehran’s nuclear ambitions while maintaining its own large nuclear arsenal.
