Trump rejects Iran's seven-day plan to reopen Strait of Hormuz

President Trump has rejected an Iranian proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days, saying the deal would not be acceptable. The rejection came after a week of diplomacy at the UN General Assembly in New York, where Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, set out conditions he said could restore shipping through the waterway.

Mr Araghchi said Iran had conveyed a concrete seven-day plan to the United States through Qatari mediators. Under the plan, the Strait of Hormuz would reopen and normal maritime passage would resume within seven days if the US lifted its naval blockade of Iranian ports, released billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets, waived oil sanctions, and paused all regional fighting, including in Lebanon. He said talks on Iran's nuclear programme could begin after Washington accepted the deal. Mr Araghchi also said Tehran does not accept coercion, threat or intimidation and would not surrender its sovereign rights under pressure.

US officials described the talks as positive and constructive. President Trump said his envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner had held a productive three-hour meeting with mediators of Iran. But speaking at the White House on Saturday, he rejected the proposal. He claimed Iran wanted to open the Strait immediately because it was losing badly, and said the US had total control of the Strait. He said 29 ships had left the previous night. He added that he liked making deals, but this one would not be accepted.

Reports before and after the rejection suggested President Trump might resume bombing Iran after the US midterm elections. In an interview with Time magazine, he said he would annihilate Iran again if he had to and that military action could resume after the November vote. He compared the six-month conflict with Vietnam, Afghanistan and Korea, and said he had destroyed Iran's nuclear capability and navy. He also said the midterm elections did not enter his thinking on Iran, and that the only thing that mattered was that Iran would never have a nuclear weapon.

At the UN, President Trump used his speech to warn Iran. He said he had a big decision to make: whether to let Iran rebuild or to annihilate the Islamic Republic quickly, drive it into hell with no chance of survival. He called the Iranian government fanatical and accused it of bloodshed and mass murder. He said he gave Iranians a chance to negotiate and they made a mistake by not taking it. He also said he believed a deal would come after the midterm elections, while insisting he was not running. His claim the US was not running low on munitions contradicted a Pentagon Inspector General report on shortfalls and resupply bottlenecks. Iran's Revolutionary Guard responded that Iran would intensify its response if the US launched new attacks, that Washington had no choice but to accept Iran's demands, and that it had rejected US attempts to establish contact.

After the rejection, Iran said only a negotiated settlement could reopen the Strait. Mr Araghchi's conditions were similar to a memorandum of understanding signed in June, which collapsed after an initial ceasefire broke down. Iran says the US must end the blockade and unfreeze assets. The US says the earlier terms no longer apply. Experts said Iran was using the Strait as its strongest leverage, especially before the midterms, and was unlikely to give it up without concessions.

Diplomatic activity continued around the region. The military commanders of Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan met in Riyadh to discuss support for Saudi Arabia amid attacks by the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen. They discussed enhanced intelligence sharing and military coordination. Gulf states were reported to be nervous about further escalation and were working behind the scenes, with Qatar in particular acting as a mediator.

On energy markets, oil flows from the Middle East have returned to pre-war levels, but not through the same transport routes. New pipelines in Saudi Arabia and the UAE and exports through the Red Sea have helped. Iranian oil is still largely absent from global markets. Prices remain high, with analysts pointing to volatility, insurance costs and the risk that current export levels cannot be maintained. The Strait of Hormuz normally carries around a fifth of the world's gas and oil supply and has been effectively closed since the war began in February.

In the UK, counter-terrorism police arrested a 27-year-old British Iranian national in central London on suspicion of preparing terrorist acts in connection with an incident at RAF Fairford. The British ambassador in Tehran was summoned over comments by the Prime Minister linking Iran to the incident. The arrest and diplomatic row added to tensions around the wider conflict.