Iran proposes deal to reopen Strait of Hormuz in seven days if US accepts Iran has offered to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume talks on its nuclear programme in seven days if the United States accepts its terms. In return Tehran wants Washington to lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports, to waive sanctions on Iranian oil sales and to observe a ceasefire that would include Lebanon.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi detailed the proposal to reporters outside the United Nations Security Council on Friday, saying it would also restart stalled talks with the US on Iran's nuclear program. “The seven-day timeline will start as soon as the United States accepts this plan,” he said.
Araghchi said initial steps would take about four to five days to complete, and the strait – a crucial ship through which a fifth of the world's oil and gas passed before the war – would be open on the sixth day. “And on day seven, the talks with the US will be started for the final deal on mutually agreed subjects,” he said, referring to the nuclear program.
Iran's disruption of the strait has emerged as its main point of leverage over Washington throughout the course of the war. The effects have been felt far beyond the Middle East and posed political problems for President Donald Trump and his Republican Party ahead of November's midterm congressional elections.
The White House said only that US officials are having positive and constructive conversations with mediators on the Iran war. In response to questions, it said the US is facilitating significant oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz, although shipping data suggests a significantly reduced flow of traffic through the passage.
There was no immediate comment on the proposal from Gulf Arab nations, although a person familiar with the matter, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations, said that Saudi Arabia was sceptical of the latest push for a deal.
The proposal, conveyed to the US by mediator Qatar, strongly resembles an interim deal reached in June, but with an accelerated timetable. The earlier agreement, which called for a 60-day interim period, quickly collapsed as Iran resumed attacks on shipping in the strait.
Trump has said he is in no rush to reach a deal, even as high oil prices fuel inflation. On the Iranian side, there are questions as to whether Iranian hardliners who dominate the security forces would accept compromises championed by relative moderates like President Masoud Pezeshkian.
“If Trump calculates this arrangement is worthwhile and can bring political benefit before the midterms and reduce gas prices, perhaps we'll see flexibility not seen in previous weeks,” said Trita Parsi, executive vice president of the Quincy Institute think tank.
But he noted “deep suspicion,” especially around the prospect of Iran merely buying time to ship out more of its oil and ease its economic pain.In the latest sign of diplomatic movement, Pezeshkian hosted the prime minister of Qatar early Friday. Qatar has been a key mediator, including during indirect Iran-US talks at the UN General Assembly this week.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that “if there’s an opportunity to exchange ideas and messages, we will.” After multiple failed attempts at a deal, however, suspicion is high on both sides. The US and Israel have attacked Iran twice while it was engaged in nuclear talks, and the US and Iran accuse each other of having swiftly violated the June agreement.
“The Iranians already know that the chances of this not being accepted by Trump are much higher than the opposite,” Hamidreza Azizi, senior Iran analyst at the International Crisis Group think tank, wrote on X.“They want to show that they were ready for diplomacy and that it was the United States that, for the third time, decided to attack in the middle of a diplomatic track – something that people within (Iran’s) strategic community have been anticipating over the past few days,” he said.
Araghchi said Friday that more than 5,000 people in Iran have been killed in the nearly seven-month US-Israeli war.The proposal would include Lebanon, where Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah have been mostly observing a ceasefire. It's not clear, however, if it would include the revived conflict between Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels and Saudi Arabia, which has put even more pressure on global markets.
Iran appears to think the Houthis' newly enhanced ability to threaten the Bab el-Mandeb strait on the Red Sea – another trade chokepoint on the other side of the Arabian Peninsula – could push Trump to make a deal. Subscribe free to our weekly newsletter for exclusive and original coverage from ITV News.
Direct to your inbox every Friday morning. Araghchi met with his Saudi counterpart on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, as he and other Iranian officials held meetings that included representatives from other countries that Tehran has exchanged military strikes with over the last year.
With the Houthis' latest surge in attacks, Saudi Arabia was sceptical of Araghchi’s latest push for a deal with the US., according to the person familiar with the matter.The kingdom, along with other Gulf states, had advocated over the summer for a return to negotiations, saying they could live with an agreement that gave Iran a temporary role in managing the Strait of Hormuz, the person said.
But the Saudi calculations changed as the Houthis seized Yemen’s strategic Red Sea coast from pro-government forces and a vital Saudi pipeline came under attack.Earlier this month, Gulf leaders planned to gather in Oman to discuss an emerging agreement between Oman and Iran on the Strait of Hormuz, which runs between the two countries.
But the meeting was cancelled after Saudi Arabia called for amendments, only some of which were accepted by Iran, the person said. Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know...