Iran Awaits U.S. Response to Hormuz Proposal Within Hours

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Iran is expecting an official U.S. response within hours to proposals discussed through Qatari mediators over Tehran's conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said, as indirect diplomacy continues despite sharp public differences over what Washington is prepared to offer.

Speaking to Iranian journalists in New York, Araghchi said Tehran had earlier submitted a seven-point proposal to the United States through Qatar and was now awaiting Washington's formal answer through the same channel.

He said Iranian officials met Qatari and Pakistani mediators as part of the continuing contacts, with Monday's discussions focused on ideas for implementing Iran's conditions.

The Qatari side presented several proposals during the meeting, Araghchi said. After discussion with Tehran, those ideas were to be conveyed back to Washington, with Iran hoping to receive the U.S. response on Tuesday.

Separate reporting also confirms that Qatari mediation remains active and that Tehran and Washington are continuing indirect contacts over a possible agreement involving the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's nuclear program.

Araghchi said one of the principal objectives of his visit to New York was to explain Tehran's position on the war and, in particular, the future of the Strait of Hormuz.

He said conditions established by Iran's leadership must be fulfilled before the strategic waterway can be fully reopened.

"Our conditions are clear," Araghchi has said during the negotiations, maintaining that Tehran will not agree to reopen the strait without guarantees that its demands are implemented.

He characterized Iran's proposal as a framework for a negotiated solution and said Tehran wanted other governments and the international community to understand that it had presented a specific diplomatic path.

"If the United States is seeking an agreement or a peaceful solution, Iran has presented a framework for such a solution," Araghchi said.

His comments come as the exact terms under discussion remain contested publicly.

Axios reporter Barak Ravid reported that U.S. officials said President Donald Trump was prepared to consider sanctions relief and the release of frozen Iranian funds in exchange for concrete Iranian concessions on the nuclear issue. The report said Qatar and Pakistan were attempting to bridge significant differences between the two sides.

Trump subsequently rejected that account.

In a post on Truth Social, the president said reports that he had offered Iran sanctions relief or access to frozen assets were false, writing that he had offered Tehran "nothing." Reuters and AFP separately reported Trump's denial.

The conflicting public positions leave uncertainty over what, if anything, has been placed on the table through intermediaries.

Iran's position, as presented by Araghchi, centers on implementation of its conditions for reopening Hormuz and reaching a wider settlement. Washington, meanwhile, continues to place Iran's nuclear program at the center of any potential agreement.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio made that position clear in an interview with Fox News, saying the Trump administration's overriding objective was to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons capability.

"Iran can never have a nuclear weapon," Rubio said.

Rubio argued that Tehran had sought to build up enough missiles, drones and other conventional weapons to make intervention against its nuclear infrastructure increasingly difficult, describing that situation as a potential point of military "immunity."

That represented the U.S. secretary of state's assessment of Iran's strategy. Tehran has presented its own position as one of seeking a negotiated settlement while maintaining its demands over Hormuz and broader economic pressure.

Rubio also defended Washington's campaign to restrict Iranian oil revenues and international financial access.

He accused Tehran of using state revenues to finance weapons and allied armed groups, including Hezbollah, Hamas and Shiite factions in Iraq, rather than directing those resources toward domestic development.

Those claims form part of Washington's justification for maintaining economic pressure while demanding verifiable changes on the nuclear issue.

The talks therefore involve more than reopening a shipping lane.

For Tehran, Hormuz, sanctions, frozen assets and an end to economic and military pressure are connected elements of a wider settlement. For Washington, any agreement must also address what it considers the long-term nuclear threat posed by Iran.

Araghchi nevertheless said Iran remained committed to diplomatic engagement despite the pressure it has faced.

He argued that Tehran still had "a voice, logic, and solutions in the diplomatic arena," and maintained that negotiation offered a possible way out of the conflict if Iran's conditions were taken seriously.

The next indication of whether the two positions can move closer is expected through Qatar.

With mediators carrying proposals between the two capitals, Tehran is now waiting for what Araghchi described as Washington's final response, a reply that could determine whether the current indirect talks move toward an agreement or expose how far apart the two sides remain.