Iran Says It Will Not Allow US to Dictate Timing of War or Peace

Iran has declared that it will not permit the United States to determine when the ongoing conflict between the two countries ends or when peace begins, insisting that decisions on war and diplomacy rest solely with Tehran. The statement came from Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei during his weekly press briefing in Tehran on Monday, as a fragile pause in hostilities holds following nearly two weeks of daily American strikes.

"We Will Not Allow the US to Determine the Time of War and Peace"

Addressing reporters, Baghaei said Iran's approach to the conflict would be guided entirely by its own security calculations rather than external pressure. He stressed that Tehran's national interests are shaped through what he described as a transparent, institutional decision-making process involving all relevant bodies of the Islamic Republic, and reiterated that Iran would keep defending itself for as long as its interests required.

The spokesman also took aim at Washington's conduct in the conflict, suggesting the United States had badly misjudged Iran's resilience. According to Baghaei, US officials had initially expected the Iranian government to collapse within days of the war's outbreak, but instead found themselves, in his words, stuck in a "self-made quagmire" nearly five months on.

A War With a Complicated Timeline
The current standoff traces back to February 28, 2026, when the United States and Israel launched what Tehran describes as a joint war of aggression against Iran. After roughly forty days of fighting, the two sides accepted a ceasefire on April 8. That truce gave way to a more formal understanding on June 17, when Iran and the US signed a Pakistan-brokered memorandum aimed at ending hostilities and paving the way for further negotiations. Iran maintains that Washington subsequently violated the terms of that memorandum, prompting a renewed and intensified American bombing campaign that continued daily for close to two weeks.

Over the weekend, US President Donald Trump ordered a halt to further strikes, with Washington's UN ambassador, Mike Waltz, saying the pause was intended to give diplomacy room to develop. Iranian military spokesperson Amir Mohammad Akraminia confirmed that both American attacks and Iran's own retaliatory operations had stopped over the preceding two nights. Even so, Baghaei was careful to draw a distinction between a genuine ceasefire and the current lull, telling reporters that "what exists at present cannot be called a ceasefire" and that Iran holds the United States responsible for the military aggression against it.

No Direct Talks With Washington
Despite the pause in strikes, Iran's Foreign Ministry said Monday that no direct negotiations are currently taking place with the United States. Gulf States continue to play a mediating role behind the scenes, but Tehran insists it is not engaged in bilateral talks with Washington. Separately, Iranian and Omani deputy foreign ministers have been meeting in Tehran, though Iran has framed those discussions strictly as a bilateral matter between two states bordering the Strait of Hormuz, focused on mechanisms to keep shipping lanes safe while respecting both countries' sovereignty and security interests. Iran maintains that the Strait itself remains closed.

Accusations Against Europe and Ukraine

Baghaei used the briefing to level criticism beyond Washington as well, accusing European countries including France and the United Kingdom of complicity with what he called American aggression. He also referenced an alleged Ukrainian attack on an Iranian merchant vessel, warning that it would not go unanswered, and accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of reckless leadership that Tehran says threatens regional and global stability.

A War Still Shaping Regional Diplomacy

The renewed pause in fighting has not stopped the broader diplomatic fallout from rippling outward. In Washington, Trump was set to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the Iran conflict alongside developments in Lebanon and the Abraham Accords, while acknowledging some daylight between the two leaders' positions. Markets, meanwhile, responded to the pause in strikes, with global benchmark Brent crude dropping sharply to trade around $90 a barrel.

For Tehran, though, Monday's message was less about the immediate tactical picture than about principle: whatever happens next in the standoff with Washington, Iran wants it understood that the calendar of war and peace will be written in Tehran, not in Washington.

Mustapha Bature Sallama.
Medical/ Science Communicator,
Private Investigator, Criminal investigation and Intelligence Analysis.

International Conflict Management and Peace Building.USIP

mustysallama@gmail.com
+233-555-275-880Sources / References
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Egypt Independent, "Iran 'will never allow the United States to determine timing of war,' foreign ministry says" https://www.egyptindependent.com/iran-will-never-allow-the-united-states-to-determine-timing-of-war-foreign-ministry-says/

Benzinga, "Iran Warns US Won't Be Allowed to Dictate Timing or Course of the War, Says Strait of Hormuz Remains Closed" https://www.benzinga.com/news/politics/26/07/60689206/iran-warns-us-wont-be-allowed-to-dictate-timing-or-course-of-the-war-says-strait-of-hormuz-remains-closed

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"Iran not to let US determine time of war, peace: FM spox" https://en.apa.az/asia/iran-not-to-let-us-determine-time-of-war-peace-fm-spox-517731

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