President Donald Trump has rejected Iran’s proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. “They made a proposal but I rejected it. They want to make a deal where they open the Strait immediately because they’re losing so badly,” he said over the weekend, adding that the US naval blockade is putting “increasing economic pressure on Iran.”
Many shippers moving cargo to or from Gulf ports are still routing around a closed Strait.
Iran’s plan would reopen the Strait within seven days if the US lifts its blockade of Iranian ports and eases sanctions on Iranian oil sales, according to CBS News. It also asks for a ceasefire that covers Lebanon, a return to nuclear talks, and the release of frozen Iranian assets. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran “will not back down” on its conditions.
IMF PortWatch has counted fewer than 10 transits a day through the Strait in recent days, against about 85 a day prior to the conflict. The US military guided 29 vessels out of the Strait under escort over the weekend, reported CBS News.
Qatar sent at least four laden LNG carriers out through Hormuz last week, the most in more than two months, according to Bloomberg ship-tracking data.
Trump told Axios he expects talks with Iran to resume this week. “They want to make a deal, but it is not the deal that I want to make,” he said.
