Iran has said it will wait for an official response from US negotiators after President Donald Trump rejected a proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping within seven days. In a post on Telegram, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi acknowledged Trump’s rejection, but accused the president of previously making contradictory statements.
Earlier, Trump told reporters at the White House that Tehran’s proposal was not “acceptable” and that they wanted to make a deal to open the strait immediately because “they’re losing so badly”.
On Friday at the UN, Araghchi told reporters that an agreement could be reached if “necessary conditions are met” between the two countries.
Araghchi said the conditions to open the strait were the same that had been included in a memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran that was signed in June.
Iran said it had raised reopening the strait and ending hostilities during negotiations on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York this past week.
The vital waterway through which around a fifth of the world’s gas and oil supply usually flows has been effectively closed since the outbreak of war in February.
“I’m rejecting their deal,” Trump said on Saturday, adding that the US already had “total control” of the strait, with “massive amounts of oil” passing through it.
Araghchi wrote on Telegram that Trump “has made many good statements, as well as many contradictory ones, which unfortunately we hear frequently”.
“We are waiting for the mediators to convey the definitive views to us, and we will make a decision based on them,” Araghchi said.
Oman, which has been acting as a mediator between the US and Iran, called for all parties to continue having open dialogue to resolve the crisis.
Oman’s foreign minister, Sayyid Badr bin Hamad bin Hamood Albusaidi, told the UN General Debate that “all parties” should cooperate with Oman in efforts to safeguard navigation in the strategic waterway.
Trump’s rejection of Iran’s proposal was backed by the US ambassador to Nato, Matthew Whitaker.
Speaking to Fox News on Saturday, Whitaker said that Iran had offered “half measures” and “illusory deals to make themselves look good on the world stage”.
“President Trump’s right to reject it,” he said.
Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Saturday that economic pressure from the US was taking a toll on Tehran.
Posting on X, Bessent said Turkey, Oman and the United Arab Emirates had halted flights from various Iranian airlines, and some banks in the UAE and Turkey had stopped transactions with Iran.
The Trump administration has dubbed an economic blockade on Iran as “Operation Economic Outcast”, and is using sanctions to pressure Tehran to stop attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
But some economists have questioned whether the latest sanctions will be effective, as this depends on the reaction from Iran’s major trading partners.
These include China, the biggest buyer of Iranian oil, which has ignored previous US sanctions and continued to do business with Tehran.
By BBC News
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