As the United States and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire with negotiations set to begin in Islamabad, Pakistan on the 10th, Iran's Supreme National Security Council has revealed a 10-point peace proposal submitted as a counter-offer to Washington. The proposal includes uranium enrichment—one of the reasons the U.S. cited for going to war—drawing skeptical views.
According to Iran's semi-official Mehr News Agency on the 7th (local time), the Supreme National Security Council issued a statement to the Iranian public saying "nearly all war objectives have been achieved, and negotiations will proceed in Islamabad to finalize the details."
The council said it rejected all proposals from the enemy (the United States and Israel) and submitted the 10-point plan to the U.S. through mediator Pakistan. It also claimed the U.S. accepted all these demands. The 10 points include control of the Strait of Hormuz—a longstanding demand of Iranian leadership—as well as an end to the war involving Iran's allied militant forces known as the "Axis of Resistance," compensation for damages to Iran, and lifting of all sanctions and UN agency resolutions. The council explained that these agreements would have legal effect under international law, stating "this includes approval through a binding UN Security Council resolution."
The council, which stated that this ceasefire "does not mean the end of the war," emphasized that "we will only accept an end to the war when the principles outlined in the 10-point plan are accepted and the details are finalized in the final negotiations. Two weeks of negotiations will begin from the 10th in Islamabad amid complete distrust of the American side." However, it added that the period could be extended depending on the agreement.
The key question is whether the 10 points include "acceptance of enriched uranium in Iran." U.S. President Donald Trump has cited an imminent nuclear threat as one of the reasons the U.S. and Israel struck Iran. For this reason, allowing Iran to keep its uranium could deal a fatal blow to America's justification for starting the war. For President Trump, facing midterm elections, it is important to tout the achievements of a war that cost astronomical sums and caused casualties. Additionally, nuclear negotiations between the Trump administration and the Iranian government have failed to reach agreement despite more than a year of stalled discussions due to stark differences in positions, making it difficult to reach a deal within just two weeks.
Iran also appears to be calculating the impact of the "enriched uranium" clause. While the 10-point list published separately by Mehr News Agency alongside the statement included "recognition of enriched uranium," a separate list omitting this clause was reportedly distributed to reporters. AP reported that "the English translation provided by Iranian diplomats to the media omitted this part," adding that "the reason for the omission was not immediately clear." Iranian state media including Mehr News Agency are provided in Persian and are not connected to the internet, making them difficult to access from abroad. Some observers speculate this closed nature may be used intentionally to control the pace of messaging.