Iran has proposed a seven-day roadmap to end the conflict with the United States, but the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed for most of the proposed truce.
Under Tehran's plan, the crucial shipping passage would reopen only on the sixth day, with broader nuclear negotiations with Washington beginning on the seventh. The sequencing means Hormuz would not be reopened at the start of the ceasefire. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran would open the strait after the United States ended the conflict, lifted its blockade, released Iranian frozen assets and allowed Iran to resume oil sales. The proposal effectively places the reopening of Hormuz near the end of the seven-day process, rather than making it an immediate first step. On the sixth day, Iran would reopen the waterway; on the seventh, negotiations on a broader agreement would begin.
US rejects Iran's proposal
Washington, however, rejected the proposal, objecting to Tehran's demand that sanctions relief, access to frozen Iranian assets and other economic measures be provided at the outset. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he was rejecting the Iranian offer.
“They want to make a deal where they open the strait immediately because they’re losing so badly,” Trump said. “But we’re winning tremendously. We have total control of the Hormuz Strait.”
US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz said the proposal required Washington to make extensive concessions before substantive negotiations began. He said Iran wanted relief from US and UN sanctions and access to billions of dollars in frozen assets.
“They were asking for everything up front,” Waltz told CNN’s “State of the Union”. “The bottom line is, they were asking for everything up front with a promise that they would then talk."
Waltz accused Iran of violating an earlier memorandum of understanding by attacking international shipping. Tehran disputes the US account and says Washington violated previous agreements.
Meanwhile, Araghchi said Iran was still waiting for an official response delivered through mediators despite Trump’s public rejection.
(With agency inputs)
