Iran, US not discussing ceasefire extension, senior Iranian official says

DUBAI: There were no ​discussions between Iran and the ​United States to extend their ceasefire because, from ​Tehran's perspective, the deal had no start date and therefore had nothing to extend, a senior Iranian source told Reuters on Wednesday.

The source's comments ‌came after ⁠Turkey's ⁠Anadolu news agency, citing Pakistani government sources, reported on Wednesday that Tehran and ​Washington had agreed to extend a 60-day ceasefire under their interim deal signed ​in June.

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The deal declared an "immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts", but quickly unravelled, with U.S. President ​Donald Trump saying it was "over" on ⁠July 7 and Iran's ‌foreign ministry declaring it "suspended" a week later.

"There ​is no ​talk of an extension because, from Iran's perspective, ⁠there is no period that began and therefore ​nothing to extend. The United States violated the ​interim agreement 48 hours after it was reached and withdrew from it a few days later," the source told Reuters.

In the agreement, the 60-day period refers to an extendable timeframe within which Iran and the U.S. were expected to ‌reach a final deal limiting Tehran's nuclear programme and lifting U.S. sanctions.

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A series of requirements, such as ​a ceasefire ​in Lebanon, free navigation ⁠in the Gulf and waivers for Iran to sell its oil, were viewed as necessary before entering the further negotiation period.

"One of ​the issues that is being discussed via mediators is the U.S. returning to the interim agreement and defining a timeframe for implementing the commitments. There has been absolutely no progress on this issue," the source added.