Iran holds firm on seven-day Hormuz terms

Iran maintained its conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz under a seven-day plan on Sunday, as US President Donald Trump rejected Tehran’s terms but said he expected negotiations to resume this week.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran would not dilute demands tied to reopening the strategic waterway, while insisting diplomacy remained possible. Iran is awaiting a definitive US response through mediators despite Trump’s public rejection, he said.

“Our conditions are clear, and any move toward reopening the Strait of Hormuz is contingent on these conditions being met,” Araghchi said. He added that only a negotiated settlement could resolve the confrontation.

Trump, however, indicated that diplomatic contacts could continue. “I expect more talks with Iran this week,” he said in a telephone interview on Sunday. “They want to make a deal, but it is not the deal that I want to make.”

The president said Tehran was seeking terms Washington might have accepted about a year earlier and argued that Iran had “overplayed their hand”. His comments left open the prospect of further bargaining despite his rejection of the proposal a day earlier.

Qatar has been mediating between Washington and Tehran, with officials shuttling messages as the two governments seek to narrow differences over the strait, sanctions, Iran’s oil exports and its nuclear programme. Another round of indirect contacts could begin as early as Monday.

Under Iran’s proposal, Tehran would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and restore normal maritime passage within seven days if Washington met specified conditions. Araghchi has said those include ending US military pressure, releasing frozen Iranian assets and allowing Iran to sell its oil. Tehran also wants an end to the US naval blockade of Iranian ports and a pause in regional fighting.

Araghchi said the requested US steps were not new and were linked to a memorandum of understanding reached by the two sides in June. Iran has maintained that the seven-day arrangement could create the conditions for broader negotiations on mutually agreed subjects.

Washington has objected to the sequencing of Tehran’s offer. US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz said Iran was seeking major benefits before negotiations on issues sought by the United States, including Tehran’s nuclear programme.

“They were asking for everything up front,” Waltz said, arguing that Trump was not confident Iran would negotiate in good faith over its nuclear activities. Iran rejects that characterisation and says it remains prepared for substantive diplomacy if its rights and economic interests are respected.

Araghchi said Tehran was prepared to negotiate but would not accept coercion. “We only care about our national interests. We are ready for negotiations,” he said, while stressing that Iran was still waiting for Washington’s formal answer through intermediaries.

The dispute centres heavily on the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important energy shipping routes. Months of conflict and restrictions around the waterway have sharply reduced normal shipping and disrupted oil flows, increasing pressure on regional exporters and global energy markets.

Trump said US forces were facilitating oil shipments through the strait and claimed more than 20 million barrels had passed through the waterway over the weekend. A US defence official put exports through the strait on Friday night at 22 million barrels.

The latest diplomatic effort followed indirect negotiations in New York last Tuesday involving US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner and Araghchi, with Qatari officials carrying messages between the delegations. Araghchi subsequently outlined the seven-day proposal publicly at the United Nations.

Trump rejected the plan on Saturday, saying it was unacceptable, but his Sunday remarks suggested Washington had not closed the diplomatic channel. Asked whether he was considering renewed US military strikes against Iran, he said he was “always thinking about it”.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has also said Tehran is prepared for talks on its nuclear programme and other issues, while rejecting what he described as bullying or coercion. He said Iran was not seeking war but would defend itself against pressure, threats and attacks.