Trump rejects Iranian proposal to reopen Strait of Hormuz

US President Donald Trump has rejected an Iranian proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end hostilities, saying the terms were unacceptable. “I reject their proposal ... I rejected their deal,” Trump told reporters at the White House.

Iran had presented the initiative at the United Nations General Assembly in New York through Qatari mediators. Iranian officials said the plan would begin when Washington accepted it and would reopen the strategic waterway on the seventh day of a truce. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the proposal also envisaged an end to hostilities across the Middle East, including in Lebanon.

The terms, according to Araghchi, included the release of frozen Iranian assets, the lifting of sanctions on Iranian oil and an end to the US naval blockade. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the plan had been developed in coordination with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. Trump said Iran wanted the strait reopened because it was losing revenue, and claimed the United States was winning.

The waterway remains largely closed to international shipping, while Washington is attempting to pressure Tehran to lift its blockade of the strait. An unnamed US official had earlier described mediated discussions as positive and constructive. However, the Wall Street Journal reported that Trump was sceptical Iran would meet his demands and had told staff that renewed bombing could follow the US midterm elections.

Trump also posted an image referring to the Strait of Hormuz as the “Trump Strait”. The source material did not report any agreement following his rejection.