Iran's supreme leader gave government 'certain authorities' over peace talks with US: Pezeshkian

Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Monday that Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei had granted the government “certain powers” to pursue talks with the United States aimed at ending the Middle East war.“We are striving to resolve the issue through dialogue. In this regard, the Supreme Leader has also conferred certain powers on the government,” Pezeshkian was quoted as saying by state news agency IRNA.His remarks came shortly after Iran's foreign ministry said Tehran was exchanging messages with Washington through mediators.Earlier in the day, Iran said it had a two-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume nuclear talks with Washington, shortening the timeline from an earlier proposal that was expected to take seven days. The plan is conditional on the US meeting Tehran's demands.Iran has said that ships passing through the reopened strait would have to follow a route agreed upon by Iran and Oman and travel under Iranian supervision.Its other demands reportedly include the lifting of the US blockade on Iranian ports, the removal of sanctions on Iranian oil sales and a ceasefire that would also cover Lebanon.Iranian foreign minis...