Iran's president granted authority for U.S. talks

Nov 03, 2026, 09:15 am

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Members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attend the inauguration of a military training center for civilian volunteers near the Imamzadeh Saleh shrine in Tajrish Square in Tehran, Iran, on Nov. 2 (local time). / AP-Yonhap

[Article summary]

1. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the supreme leader had granted the government certain powers to negotiate with the United States.

2. Iran proposed that it could restore security in the Strait of Hormuz within two days if the United States accepted and implemented its demands.

3. U.S. President Donald Trump raised the possibility of reaching an agreement but did not rule out military action.

4. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the resumption of airstrikes against Iran immediately after the U.S. midterm elections.

5. International oil prices fell more than 7% on hopes for negotiations, while Gulf states prepared for retaliatory attacks.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Nov. 2 (local time) that Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei had granted the government certain powers to negotiate with the United States, according to Iran's state-run IRNA news agency.

U.S. President Donald Trump also raised the possibility of reaching an agreement with Iran and said he would not rush a decision to resume attacks. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pressing for airstrikes to resume, while the United States and Iran remain at odds over the nuclear issue and the order in which the maritime blockade should be lifted.

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An Iranian woman walks past a large billboard depicting Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei in Tehran on Oct. 31 (local time). Iranian Army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Mohammad Akraminia warned on X that day that if the United States resumed military operations against Iran, the war would spread to a much wider region. Diplomatic efforts by mediating countries were continuing at the time. / EPA

Pezeshkian says supreme leader granted government some authority to negotiate

At a meeting with provincial governors and mayors that day, President Masoud Pezeshkian said, "The government is working to resolve this issue through dialogue, and the Supreme Leader of the Revolution has granted the government certain powers in this regard."

He did not specify the scope of those powers or whether the conditions for negotiations had changed. Bloomberg reported that Ali Vaez, director of the Iran Project at the International Crisis Group (ICG), assessed that the supreme leader had granted limited authority with clear boundaries.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Iran could restore security in the Strait of Hormuz within two days and begin negotiations if the United States accepted and implemented Iran's demands. He explained that a seven-point proposal presented in September remained the basis for negotiations and that the implementation period had been shortened from the original seven days to two days.

Iran is demanding that the United States lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports, allow Iranian crude oil exports and permit access to some of its frozen assets overseas.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said, "Everything depends on the political reasonableness of the United States," warning that Iran would respond more forcefully than before if Washington chose military operations over diplomacy.

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U.S. President Donald Trump delivers his final campaign speech ahead of the midterm elections in front of the Reflecting Pool at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 2 (local time), one day before the elections. During the speech, Trump also mentioned several renovation projects in Washington, D.C., including the Reflecting Pool. Some of the projects, including the Reflecting Pool renovation, have sparked controversy. / EPA-Yonhap

Trump says "no need to rush"

As Iran presented its proposal for negotiations, Trump was asked that day in front of the Reflecting Pool at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., whether he was considering attacking Iran after the midterm elections. He replied, "No."

"We will do something one way or another, but there is no need to rush," he told U.S. online news outlet Axios. "We are talking to Iran, and things are going well."

He added that although Iran wanted a deal more than ever, the actual urgency was lower than expected.

Trump claimed on his social media platform Truth Social that oil prices had fallen by nearly $10 (13,460 won) per barrel because people believed there would be no war with Iran.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance also expressed optimism about the possibility of reaching an agreement and said there was no deadline for resuming airstrikes. However, he stressed that Iran must make a "firm and verifiable commitment" not to rebuild its nuclear program.

At a campaign rally in Iowa the previous day, Trump also said, "At some point, we will have to bring the hammer down on them."

Israeli right-wing activists and supporters of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stage a demonstration calling for new elections in Haifa, Israel, on Nov. 1 (local time). Israel's general election on Oct. 27 resulted in a political deadlock, as neither political bloc secured the 61 seats needed to form a government in the 120-seat Knesset, Israel's parliament. / EPA-Yonhap

Netanyahu urges strikes immediately after midterms

Unlike U.S. President Donald Trump, who wants to give diplomacy more time, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Trump during a phone call on Oct. 31 to resume airstrikes against Iran immediately after the U.S. midterm elections.

Trump conveyed his intention to give diplomatic efforts a chance first, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported. The WSJ also reported that the Israeli military had drawn up attack plans and heightened its state of alert.

A U.S. official also said Netanyahu wanted to resume hostilities, but Trump was "not there yet," according to the Financial Times (FT).

The Associated Press (AP) analyzed that a resumption of full-scale war with Iran could help Netanyahu form an emergency government after failing to secure a majority in the general election.

According to Axios, Vice President JD Vance and White House envoy Steve Witkoff favor reaching an agreement, while Netanyahu and U.S. Secretary of Defense (Secretary of War) Pete Hegseth advocate resuming airstrikes.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Ratcliffe and Secretary of State Marco Rubio recommend continuing economic pressure without either going to war or reaching an agreement.

Iranians walk along a street in Tehran on Oct. 31 (local time). / EPA-Yonhap

Qatar mediates tentative agreement

Despite pressure to resume airstrikes, a Qatari mediation team visited Tehran on the night of Nov. 2 to discuss a draft agreement that had been under negotiation for the previous eight days with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, Reuters reported. The delegation was led by senior Qatari official Ali Al-Thawadi, according to The New York Times (NYT).

One of the proposed arrangements outlined a sequence in which Iran would halt attacks on ships, the United States would ease its blockade, Iran would permit nuclear inspections, and the United States would lift some sanctions, according to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

The United States is reluctant to lift the blockade without progress on the nuclear issue. According to the Financial Times (FT), Washington is demanding that Iran accept a schedule for inspections of its nuclear facilities by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and transfer 440 kilograms of highly enriched uranium out of the country. Iran, however, refuses to transfer the uranium abroad.

Iran maintains that it will resume nuclear negotiations only after confirming that the United States has fulfilled its demands. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the nuclear issue was not discussed during the talks.

The NYT reported that Iran's leadership is also publicly considering withdrawing from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

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Ships sail through the Strait of Hormuz, seen from Musandam, Oman, on Oct. 2 (local time). / Reuters-Yonhap

U.S. military prepares for possible renewed strikes on Iran

Military preparations are also underway as negotiations continue. Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, briefed President Donald Trump in person at the White House on Oct. 29 on options for attacking Iran, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported. Four European officials told Reuters that U.S. forces had assembled sufficient military assets in the region to launch an attack at short notice. Reuters also reported that some Iranian sources considered renewed U.S. strikes more likely than an agreement.

U.S. allies in the Gulf, concerned that American military bases and economic and civilian facilities on their territory could become targets of retaliation, conducted security drills at airports and other locations. Iran has drawn up a list of potential retaliatory targets, including U.S. military bases and undersea communications cables, Reuters reported.

Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei instructed military commanders to respond to threats "without geographical limits," according to the Associated Press (AP). Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), said his country hoped for a diplomatic breakthrough but was "preparing for the worst." Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty warned that another confrontation would be more dangerous and destructive.

China has decided to send a special envoy to Iran, Oman and Saudi Arabia in early to mid-November. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi called for a political solution rather than the use of force. Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone on Nov. 2 with Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, to discuss efforts to reach a diplomatic agreement.

Oil prices plunge more than 7% on hopes for negotiations, with Brent at $104.77

Expectations of a diplomatic resolution were reflected in international oil prices. Brent crude fell 7.63% from the previous session to close at $104.77 a barrel (141,020 won), while December futures for U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) dropped 7.36% to $96.46 a barrel (129,835 won).

On Oct. 30, December Brent futures had climbed to $117.64 a barrel (158,343 won). The Financial Times (FT) explained that the rollover of the benchmark contract from December to January also partly contributed to the day's decline in oil prices.

Francesco Pesole, a strategist at ING, said the more conciliatory remarks from both sides had reduced the geopolitical risk premium built into oil prices. Russell Hardy, CEO of global commodity trading firm Vitol, said eight months of disruptions to Middle Eastern oil supplies had exhausted available buffers, making it difficult for the tightly balanced market to absorb further disruptions.

More than 35 vessels were attacked in the Strait of Hormuz last month, according to The New York Times (NYT). Arsenio Dominguez, secretary-general of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), warned that passage through the strait was unsafe because mine clearance had not been confirmed.

Ha Man-joo