U.S. President Donald Trump has rejected Iran's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz after seven days. Iran, however, left room for negotiations, stressing that a diplomatic solution is the only way forward.
Trump told reporters at the White House on the 26th that Iran had approached the United States with a proposal on reopening the strait but that he had turned it down, according to AFP and other foreign media.
"Iran is getting beaten badly right now, so they want a deal that opens the strait immediately," he said, adding that the United States exercises complete control over the Strait of Hormuz. "If they want a deal, I don't think that's bad," he said. "I tend to prefer a deal myself." His remarks are seen as signaling an intent to keep up pressure until Washington secures favorable terms, rather than rushing to wrap up talks with Tehran.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said earlier, on the 24th, at U.N. headquarters in New York that Tehran had conveyed to the United States through mediating countries a plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz on the seventh day and return to the negotiating table if certain conditions were met.
Iran set out three conditions: a halt to hostilities on all fronts, including Lebanon; the release of some frozen Iranian assets; and the lifting of the naval blockade and oil sanctions. If the United States abides by those conditions for seven days, Iran would open the strait and resume nuclear talks.
Araghchi said Iran would wait for a clear U.S. position on the conditions it had presented through mediators regarding the reopening of the strait.
After Trump rejected the proposal, Araghchi wrote on his Telegram channel that Iran had seen the U.S. president's initial reaction. "But nothing has been formally conveyed to us through the mediating countries yet, and we are waiting for a definitive position to be relayed through them," he said.
"The U.S. president made some positive remarks, but at the same time he made several statements that do not add up," Araghchi said. "It is regrettable, because this is a pattern we have witnessed many times. In the end, we will make our judgment based on the final and definitive position of the United States."
He added: "Our conditions are clear. Any progress toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz is premised on our conditions being met, and we will never back down from that. We have never closed the door to diplomacy and negotiation, and at the same time we have not conceded our rights, so we hold the political upper hand."
Araghchi, who is visiting the United States to attend the U.N. General Assembly, is scheduled to remain there through the 30th.
