Iran said on Wednesday it had received a full U.S. response to its latest proposal to resurrect the collapsed ceasefire in the Gulf, a development reported by Reuters, even though President Donald Trump had said days earlier that he had already rejected the offer.
According to an official briefed on the talks who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, Qatari mediators briefed Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on the American response on Tuesday when Araghchi stopped in Doha on his way home from New York. The official said the two sides largely agree on the steps needed to reach an agreement but remain divided over the order in which those steps should be taken.
Iran put forward the proposal last week: the United States would lift its blockade of Iranian ports, and Iran would reopen the disrupted Strait of Hormuz within seven days. Tehran says the plan aims to restore an interim agreement that collapsed weeks after it was signed by Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in June. Last week, Qatari mediators shuttled between U.S. and Iranian envoys in New York on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly — the first proximity talks between the warring sides since the ceasefire unravelled.
Trump publicly rejected the plan on Sunday, only for Iranian state media to report on Wednesday that a complete U.S. reply had arrived anyway. On Thursday, Trump warned that Washington faced a choice between fresh military action and a deal: “We blow them up or make a deal,” he said at the White House, adding, “The time is coming. It’s gonna end very soon, one way or the other.” He also claimed the U.S. holds “total control” of the Strait of Hormuz, though he said that could change if Iran dropped a mine.
Meanwhile, Gulf shipping is quietly recovering. Ship-tracking data from Kpler showed Middle Eastern crude exports reached about 16.33 million barrels per day in September — roughly 80% of the 19.51 million barrels recorded before the conflict broke out in February.
Why it matters: The Strait of Hormuz carries roughly a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil; any durable halt to the fighting would stabilize energy prices and shipping insurance, while a breakdown toward fresh strikes would do the opposite.
Sources:
https://www.haaretz.com/middle-east-news/iran/2026-09-30/ty-article/iran-addresses-american-voters-amidst-peace-talks-and-u-s-withdrawl-from-iraq/000001a0-f188-d9ab-abfd-f7a9dd480000
https://news.cgtn.com/news/2026-10-01/Iran-receives-US-response-to-latest-proposal-as-Gulf-shipping-recovers-1QSH7AOWa4g/p.html
https://www.ndtvprofit.com/world/will-us-iran-war-escalate-trump-hints-at-strikes-says-we-blow-them-up-or-make-a-deal-12123044
