Mediators Push Iran-US Deal to Reopen Strait of Hormuz as Talks Resume

Mediators are continuing to work with Iran and the United States on a proposal to end the fighting and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, with indirect talks expected to resume on Monday, according to three officials familiar with the negotiations.

The discussions come as the war enters its eighth month, bringing widespread economic hardship. Previous attempts to secure safe shipping through the strait — one of the world's most critical waterways — have all failed.

Uncertainty hung over the weekend after President Donald Trump told journalists he had rejected Tehran's latest proposal. That plan would have reopened the strait within a week in exchange for the US lifting its blockade of Iranian ports, releasing frozen Iranian assets and waiving sanctions on Iranian oil sales, among other conditions.

Iran's foreign minister remained in New York and said he was awaiting word from the mediators. Qatar has been mediating.

Two of the officials confirmed on Monday that mediators are working with both sides on a proposal that would include reopening the strait and lifting the US blockade, followed by the removal of sanctions. Under the draft text, the strait would reopen in line with a separate arrangement Iran has been discussing with Oman, which lies on the other side of the waterway. That deal would involve no tolls — a point Tehran has pushed for — and seeks to temporarily manage shipping traffic on what was regarded as an international waterway before the war.

The same two officials said that despite Trump's public remarks, Washington has not officially rejected the current proposal, suggesting his comments may have been a negotiating tactic. The third official said the US is seeking Iranian concessions on its nuclear programme, including allowing inspectors into the country. Under a Memorandum of Understanding signed in June that collapsed within days, Iran's nuclear programme was to be discussed over a 60-day period.

All three officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss behind-the-scenes diplomacy. One reported positive signals from both sides, a second cited "slight progress" over the weekend, and the third said mediators are still trying to soften the positions of both parties. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

While Iran's latest proposal echoes the June deal, a key difference is speed. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told a closed-door meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly last week that Tehran had pitched the deal as benefiting Trump in the midterm elections. He later told journalists that "the seven-day timeline will start as soon as the United States accepts this plan."

Both sides have been hurting economically — the US from high oil prices as Iran attacks ships in the strait, and Tehran from the naval blockade and a growing number of US sanctions that bottle up its oil sales. Brent crude, the international standard, is above $108.

For months the two sides have sought to outlast each other, while regional countries endure missile and drone attacks as Tehran claims to target US military assets in the region.

Reflecting Iran's impatience, a rare statement on Monday attributed to the theocracy's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei noted the "painful blows" enemy forces have received near the strait. "Before long, the Arabian Sea, too, will be rid of them," the statement added.

The latest proposed deal again seeks to end the fighting on all fronts, including in Lebanon. But a new front has emerged in recent weeks as Iran-backed rebels in Yemen are now perched on another crucial waterway, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at the southern entrance to the Red Sea, further pressuring global markets. Iran argues that the Houthis have their own demands and that their conflict with neighbouring Saudi Arabia is separate from the US-Iran war, but Iranian officials said they are willing to help find a settlement between the Houthis and the Saudis, one of the officials said.