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Iran on Monday said it was ready to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days if the United States accepts its conditions, shortening an earlier proposed timeline of one week.
“The possibility of implementing this plan in two days is another indication of Iran’s good-faith approach,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said.
He said messages were being exchanged with Washington through mediators, adding that reopening the strategic waterway and resuming negotiations depended on the US accepting Tehran’s demands.
“Only then can we discuss the subsequent stages,” he said.
Iran’s demands include ending the Middle East war on all fronts, unfreezing its overseas assets, lifting sanctions on its oil sector and ending the US naval blockade of Iranian ports.
Since the war broke out in late February, Tehran has asserted control over the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global energy shipping route, and regularly targeted vessels attempting to cross without its authorisation. The United States imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports in response.
Iran had initially proposed a seven-day plan in September, conveyed through Qatar, under which it would reopen the strait on the sixth day after Washington met its conditions.
In an interview with Al Jazeera released on Sunday, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Washington must accept a new transit route agreed upon by Iran and Oman. He also called for the removal of recently imposed sanctions and a reduction in US troop numbers in the region.
The diplomatic efforts come amid renewed threats by the United States and Israel to launch further attacks on Iran.
US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he still had to “take care” of one or two targets, including Pickaxe Mountain in central Iran, a suspected nuclear site whose designation as such Tehran denies.
Baqaei warned that any military attack on Iran would trigger a strong response.
“Any act of aggression against Iran, any military attack against Iran, by whatever means, will be met with a powerful, immediate and comprehensive response from us,” he said.
