By Parisa Hafezi and Jana Choukeir
DUBAI, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Iran and the United States are still far from a deal to end their war, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Tuesday, as US President Donald Trump declined to rule out a resumption of US combat operations after the elections in the United States.
Trump made his comments in separate interviews as Americans voted in pivotal midterm elections in which the unpopular Iran war has been a key factor and as mediator Qatar stepped up efforts to avert
a renewed escalation.
Overnight, the United States carried out "defensive" strikes on Iran's Qeshm island, targeting surface-to-air missiles used against US assets, a US official said. Another official said the strikes appeared limited and did not signal a return to major combat operations.
Trump on Tuesday renewed warnings of military action in an interview with the Fox News Channel. "I'm not looking to ... kill lots of people," he said. "If we have to, we'll have to."
In an interview with the Financial Times, Trump suggested he was content with the state of the stand-off with Iran.
"We seem to be getting everything we want," the paper quoted him as saying in a six-minute telephone interview.
The FT said it asked Trump about what it called "strong hints" by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that there would be an attack later this week.
"I’m ready, we’re ready. We’re locked and loaded if we need to go, but there may be no reason for it," he replied.
Trump told the FT indirect negotiations with Iran about its stockpile of enriched uranium were ongoing. "We’re having discussions, and we’ll see how that all works out," he said.
Also on Tuesday, Trump made a surprise announcement of a deal with Netanyahu under which Washington would stop $4 billion in annual funding to Israel after this year, but would sell weapons to its close Middle East ally. The remarks appeared aimed at swaying voters unhappy with US support for Israel.
Fears have grown that the conflict launched by the United States and Israel in February could flare up again after Tuesday's midterms.
"Mediators are working hard to narrow gaps between Tehran and Washington," the senior Iranian official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Qatari mediators travelled to Tehran on Monday night for talks on a version of a draft US-Iran deal discussed over the past eight days.
"Tehran's conditions must be met if the US wants Hormuz reopened," the Iranian official cautioned, referring to Iranian demands including waiving oil sanctions, ending the US naval blockade and releasing frozen Iranian funds.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, later said the US response to Iranian demands "was not convincing", adding that Washington "must fully and explicitly address Iran's seven conditions and act upon them".
"Only in this case will the Strait of Hormuz be reopened," he wrote on X.
'WE CANNOT LOSE HOPE'
Qatar's foreign ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said both the United States and Iran were reviewing proposals put forward by mediators. While the Qatari team that travelled to Tehran had returned to Doha, talks were continuing.
"There are intensive joint regional efforts underway to avoid escalation," he told a news briefing, adding that Qatar remained hopeful a deal could still be reached to pave the way for future negotiations.
"If there were no glimmer of hope, there would be no negotiations... and as a mediator, we cannot lose hope," he said.
An official briefed on the talks said feedback from Washington and Tehran was expected within the next 36 hours.
A senior Iranian official told Reuters later on Tuesday that there is no deadline for exchanging messages with Washington through mediators or reviewing responses.
'FORCEFUL RESPONSE'
The senior Iranian official said Tehran would not accept Washington's "excessive demands" and that nuclear talks could begin only after Iran's conditions were met.
Tehran would respond forcefully, in the region and beyond, to US strikes, the official added.
Oil prices slipped in early trade on Wednesday as investors awaited the results of the midterm elections and their potential impact on peace talks, even after industry data showed US crude stocks unexpectedly fell last week.
Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said the ball was in Washington's court after a "strong and rational response" from Tehran.
"The enemy seeks to force the Iranian nation into submission through threats and military action, but they are sorely mistaken; Iran will not submit," Qalibaf said. He said Tehran's response to any US miscalculation would be unpredictable and unconstrained by geography.
The head of Iran's armed forces general staff, Ali Abdollahi, said Iran's military was updating target lists that included US and Israeli assets and would respond immediately to any threat.
Hardline newspaper Kayhan said on Tuesday that US facilities in Britain, Italy, Greece, Romania, Albania and Cyprus could be targeted in the event of renewed war.
IRANIAN-SAUDI TALKS
Alongside indirect exchanges between Tehran and Washington, regional powers are pursuing diplomatic efforts to prevent further escalation. The conflict has also widened, with Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis stepping up attacks on Saudi Arabia.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Tuesday talks with Saudi Arabia were continuing to seek new regional security arrangements that would exclude foreign military involvement.
Last week, senior officials from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan met Iranian counterparts in Tehran, the first such high-level contacts since August.
(Additional reporting by Nayera Abdallah, Tala Ramadan and Elwely Elwelly in Dubai, Andrew Mills in Doha, Doina Chiacu and David Brunnstrom in Washington, Yasmine Ghania in Cairo; Writing by Dubai Newsroom and Tom Perry, Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan, Ros Russell, Don Durfee and Kate Mayberry)
