Getty ImagesUS negotiators have not officially responded to Iran’s proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the country’s foreign minister said, despite President Donald Trump publicly rejecting the offer on Saturday.
Trump told reporters at the White House that Iran’s proposal was not “acceptable” and that Tehran wanted to make a deal to open the strait to commercial shipping within seven days because “they’re losing so badly”.
In a post on Telegram, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi acknowledged Trump’s rejection, but said the president had made contradictory statements in the past.
He said Iran’s negotiators were waiting for a “definitive” response, and that only a “negotiated solution” could end the conflict.
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, causing massive rises in global oil prices and steep fuel cost increases for consumers.
Araghchi wrote on Telegram that Trump “has made many good statements, as well as many contradictory ones, which unfortunately we hear frequently”.
He continued: “We are waiting for the mediators to convey the definitive views to us, and we will make a decision based on them.”
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 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 sanctions imposed by the US were taking a toll on Iran.
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 “Operation Economic Outcast”, with the White House attempting to use economic pressure to force 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.
