ISLAMABAD: Iran said on Tuesday that US President Donald Trump's call for a peace deal with Tehran was inconsistent with Washington's actions, referring to its strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in June.
"The desire for peace and dialogue expressed by the US president is at odds with the hostile and criminal behavior of the United States towards the Iranian people," the foreign ministry said in a statement.
12-day war with Israel
In mid-June, Israel launched an unprecedented bombing campaign on Iran, striking nuclear and military facilities as well as residential areas and killing more than 1,000 people.
The 12-day war with Israel, during which the US struck the key nuclear facilities in Iran, derailed high-level nuclear talks between Tehran and Washington.
Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks that killed dozens in Israel.
A ceasefire between Iran and Israel has been in place since June 24.
Ball in Tehran’s court
During a Monday speech at the Israeli Knesset, Trump said he wanted a peace deal with Iran and that the ball was in Tehran's court for any agreement to come to pass.
In its statement, Iran dismissed the call.
"How can one attack the residential areas and nuclear facilities of a country in the midst of political negotiations, kill more than 1,000 people, including innocent women and children, and then demand peace and friendship?" the foreign ministry asked.
‘Irresponsible and shameful’
Trump also said "nothing would do more good" for the region than for Iran's leaders to renounce terrorists, stop threatening their neighbors, quit funding their militant proxies, and finally recognize Israel's right to exist.
Tehran struck back, calling the remarks "irresponsible and shameful" and accusing the United States of being "a leading producer of terrorism and a supporter of the terrorist and genocidal Zionist regime".
"The United States ... has no moral authority to accuse others," Iran's foreign ministry said.
Convincing Tehran
Former president of Iranian American Council Trita Parsi, while commenting on Trump's call for peace deal, stated in a post on X: "This is how he sounded in January and February — yet he still greenlit Israel’s attack on Iran and later bombed Iran himself."
"Tehran is now wary that talk of diplomacy may simply be a façade meant to lull it into a false sense of security before another strike," he added.
Parsi states: "Trump may genuinely seek diplomacy, but convincing Tehran of that will be far harder given his perceived duplicity in May and June."
"Rejecting diplomacy won’t improve its situation; it would only invite harsher sanctions and possibly another round of bombing," he added.
