Iran has dismissed ideas put forward by Qatari mediators to end its war with the United States and Israel, describing them as unacceptable and saying they did not amount to an offer.

What the reported plan contains

Qatari mediators presented Iran with a new draft deal, an official briefed on the negotiations said, adding that the proposal for the eight-month-old conflict was presented on Sunday and was being considered by Tehran, with a response expected by the end of the week. A senior Iranian official involved in the talks gave a different account, saying Doha had presented only "unacceptable ideas and not an offer" and that Tehran's policy of showing no flexibility over the nuclear issue remained unchanged.

Diplomacy continues despite the rejection

According to that official, the proposal sets a seven-day timeline of daily confidence-building steps for both sides, possibly starting early next week, with several countries as guarantors.

The exact steps and the identity of the guarantor countries have not been made public. Tehran has said its conditions include ending the US blockade of Iranian ports and lifting sanctions on Iranian oil exports, while Washington wants the nuclear issue included in negotiations from the start.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Wednesday that Tehran remained in close contact with intermediaries to review ideas for implementing its own seven-day proposal to end the war. He said Iran continued to give diplomacy a chance and that its plan could be implemented in less than a week.

Qatar, along with Pakistan, has led mediation to end the war, which has disrupted global shipping and oil supplies and spread to Saudi Arabia and Yemen. The conflicting accounts leave the mediation's status unclear, and Tehran's response will show whether it opens a path to talks or closes it.

Sources: Reuters via BusinessWorld and Harava News.