Iran says it expects US answer today on Hormuz reopening plan
Foreign Minister Araghchi says Tehran also expects a response on nuclear talks through Qatari mediators by Tuesday
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Map: The Gulf and Hormuz, marking Strait of Hormuz
UpdateTuesday, September 29, 2026 at 1:35 AM ET
Araghchi said Qatari and Pakistani mediation channels have intensified since Iran unveiled its Hormuz plan. Iran's parliament is weighing a bill to quit the nuclear inspections framework that Washington has demanded as the basis for any deal, and Iran's deputy chairman of the National Security Committee said the US must accept Iran's terms before talks can proceed. One US source put the odds of a deal as extremely slim.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran expects Washington to respond today to its proposal for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. He said the United States must decide whether it wants peace or a deal, and repeated that conditions set by Iran's Supreme Leader must be met before the strait reopens.
Araghchi said Iran also expects an answer on separate nuclear talks, relayed through Qatari mediators, by Tuesday. Qatari officials have discussed ways to meet Iran's demands with Tehran, with the resulting ideas due to be passed to Washington. Iran has proposed delaying its nuclear commitments until after the first phase of any deal, and the dispute now centers on which side gives up leverage first. An Iranian official said this week that Hormuz, not the nuclear file, has become the central sticking point in the talks.
The strait has seen renewed activity in recent days. A blast was heard off Iran's Qeshm Island, the second reported in the area, with no damage or casualties confirmed. Iranian state television said the sound was likely warning shots fired at vessels violating the strait. Iran's oil exports have fallen sharply under a US naval presence in the area, while exports from Saudi Arabia and Iraq have recovered, with Saudi Arabia routing oil through the Persian Gulf after its east-west pipeline resumed operation. Separately, President Trump said he did not offer Iran sanctions relief, contradicting earlier reports of an offer tied to nuclear progress.
The posture is the same one Iran has held for weeks: a proposal on the table, conditions attached, and an expectation that Washington answers on Tehran's terms rather than moving first. Earlier deadlines in this cycle, including a four to five day ultimatum and a seven day window after acceptance, have slipped without a deal, and the United States has already rejected one Hormuz reopening proposal outright. Unless today's response breaks from that pattern, the standoff and the oil market's risk premium tied to it are likely to stay where they are.