Iran accused some countries in the region of participating in US attacks against Tehran, and allowing their territories to be used by attacking forces.
“We hold the United States responsible for the military aggression against Iran, which began on February 28," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said during a weekly press briefing on Monday.
“Of course, we cannot ignore the participation of some countries in the region in this aggression,” he claimed.
Baqaei said Tehran continues to seek good relations with neighbouring countries and harbours “no hostility” toward them.
“We have repeatedly stressed that we seek good relations with the countries of the region. On the contrary, there are many ties and shared interests between Iran and the countries of the Gulf that can serve as a foundation for mutual trust and cooperation,” he said.
The spokesperson, however, accused some regional governments of allowing their territories to be used by US forces attacking Iran.
“Unfortunately, these countries made their territories available to the aggressors against Iran, contrary to all principles of international law and good-neighbourliness. In some cases, we know that they independently participated in the military aggression against Iran,” he claimed.
Gulf countries have repeatedly denied participation in US attacks against Iran and accused Tehran of striking civilian infrastructure in its strikes on their territories.
‘Like a mafia gang’
The spokesperson also said that Iran is not currently engaged in negotiations with the US and that any future talks would depend on Washington changing its conduct, dismissing the reports that Tehran had sought negotiations with the US.
“That does not accord with our principles. Claims that Iran has requested negotiations are merely reports,” Baqaei said in his comments carried by the semi-official Mehr news agency.
He said Iran has consistently viewed diplomacy as a tool for safeguarding its interests.
“We have never hesitated to use diplomatic tools to protect our national interests. We consider diplomacy a means of protecting Iran's national interests,” he said.
While acknowledging that mediators may be conveying messages between the two sides, Baqaei said: “At the present time, we are not conducting any negotiations with the American side.”
Asked about Iran's conditions for starting negotiations, Baqaei said the US “must first demonstrate more responsible behaviour.”
“The United States must learn how to behave like a responsible government,” he said, accusing Washington of acting “like a mafia gang” over the past one to two years by disregarding international law.
“As long as this behaviour continues, we cannot hope to create a favourable public atmosphere,” he added.
On Sunday, Iranian military spokesperson Amir Mohammad Akraminia said the US had halted its attacks over the previous two days and that Iran's "counter-operations" had also stopped.
According to an Axios report on Saturday, US President Donald Trump had directed the US military not to launch new strikes on Iran, ending nearly two weeks of daily attacks.
Tensions between the US and Iran have intensified in recent weeks, with Washington carrying out attacks on Iran and Tehran responding by targeting what it said were US military facilities and equipment in countries across the region.
