Iran reviews US peace plan as Trump signals both hope and threat

Iran said on Wednesday it was reviewing a US peace proposal aimed at formally ending the war, though the key American demands that Tehran curb its nuclear programme and reopen the Strait of Hormuz remain unresolved. Tehran said it would deliver a formal response, while US President Donald Trump said he believed a deal was still possible.

Speaking in the Oval Office, Trump said the two sides had held “very good talks” over the previous 24 hours and that an agreement was “very possible”. Yet only hours earlier he had struck a far tougher tone, warning on Truth Social that the United States could restart its bombing campaign if Iran rejected the latest proposal. The mixed messaging underscored how fragile the diplomacy remains, even as both sides edge closer to a possible framework.

According to sources briefed on the mediation, negotiators are close to a one-page memorandum that would formally end the conflict and trigger 30 days of detailed talks. Those talks would cover reopening shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, lifting US sanctions on Iran and agreeing limits on Iran’s nuclear activity. But the draft still leaves out several long-standing US demands, including restraints on Iran’s missile programme and an end to its support for regional proxy militias. Reuters also reported that it makes no mention of Iran’s existing stockpile of more than 400 kilograms of near-weapons-grade uranium.

Iranian officials reacted coolly. One lawmaker described the proposal as more of an American wish list than a practical settlement, while parliamentary speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf mocked suggestions that a breakthrough was imminent. Tehran has long insisted it does not seek a nuclear weapon, but the uranium issue remains central to the talks. Trump said separately on Wednesday that the United States would ultimately obtain the enriched uranium, showing that Washington still sees the nuclear file as the heart of any eventual deal.

The diplomatic movement has already rippled through global markets. Reports of progress sent Brent crude sharply lower and lifted equities, as investors bet that an end to the conflict could ease pressure on energy supplies. Trump also paused a US operation to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz, citing progress in negotiations. Even so, the wider confrontation is not over: Reuters said the US blockade on Iranian shipping remains in place, and tensions around the waterway continue to cloud the outlook for both the region and the global economy.

For now, the proposal offers a possible off-ramp rather than a full settlement. It may be enough to stop the fighting formally, but the hardest questions — Iran’s nuclear future, sanctions relief and freedom of navigation through one of the world’s most important energy chokepoints — are still waiting to be answered.

Source: Reuters