{"id":9988,"date":"2026-04-28T22:35:08","date_gmt":"2026-04-28T17:05:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/iran-offers-to-reopen-strait-of-hormuz-if-us-lifts-its-blockade-and-the-war-ends-officials-say\/"},"modified":"2026-04-28T22:35:08","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T17:05:08","slug":"iran-offers-to-reopen-strait-of-hormuz-if-us-lifts-its-blockade-and-the-war-ends-officials-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/iran-offers-to-reopen-strait-of-hormuz-if-us-lifts-its-blockade-and-the-war-ends-officials-say\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran offers to reopen Strait of Hormuz if US lifts its blockade and the war ends, officials say"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div itemprop=\"articleBody\">\n<p><iframe title=\"Everlit Audio Player\" src=\"https:\/\/everlit.audio\/embeds\/artl_DKJpZtnGgOP?ui_title_intro=Listen+now%3A&amp;client=wp&amp;client_version=2.7.1\" width=\"100%\" height=\"136px\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>CAIRO (AP) \u2014 Iran offered to end its chokehold on the <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/the-worlds-most-important-21-miles-0000019d2fbfd29daffdefffc72e0000\">Strait of Hormuz<\/a> if the U.S. lifts its blockade on the country and ends the war in a proposal that would postpone discussions on the Islamic Republic\u2019s nuclear program, two regional officials said Monday.<\/p>\n<p>U.S. President Donald Trump seems unlikely to accept the offer, which was passed to the Americans by Pakistan and would leave unresolved the disagreements that led the U.S. and Israel <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/iran\">to go to war<\/a> on Feb. 28. And U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio appeared to rule out any deal that excludes Iran\u2019s nuclear program.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe can\u2019t let them get away with it,\u201d Rubio said in a Fox News interview Monday. \u201cWe have to ensure that any deal that is made, any agreement that is made, is one that definitively prevents them from sprinting towards a nuclear weapon at any point.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>With a <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/us-iran-war-pakistan-april-21-2026-177a2d0701ef172c3e51686bc1f18f30\">fragile ceasefire<\/a> in place, the U.S. and Iran are locked in a standoff over the strait, through which a fifth of the world\u2019s traded oil and gas passes in peacetime. The <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/us-iran-war-navy-blockade-strait-of-hormuz-5ede64fed469d3cf99524976183e3bfc\">U.S blockade<\/a> is designed to prevent Iran from selling its oil, depriving it of crucial revenue while also potentially creating a situation where Tehran has to shut off production because it has nowhere to store oil.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/stranded-ships-iran-war-hormuz-b1b22b26312c7ea2b70b3f542f235e77\">The strait\u2019s closure<\/a>, meanwhile, has put pressure on Trump, as oil and gasoline prices have skyrocketed ahead of crucial midterm elections, and it has pressured his Gulf allies, which use the waterway to export their oil and gas.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Renewed demands to end blockade<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Frustration among many nations is mounting, with renewed demands Monday to end the blockade that has had <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/iran-war-oil-consumer-products-petroleum-cdbcc14cca17d7db49b34e016adebac1\">far-reaching effects throughout the world economy<\/a>, including raising the price of fertilizer, food and other basic goods.<\/p>\n<p>The Iranian proposal would push negotiations on <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/iran-us-nuclear-timeline-war-146b4072f1f6cc43cfd3bde740313a5c\">the country\u2019s nuclear program<\/a> to a later date. Trump said one of the major reasons he went to war was to deny Iran the ability to develop nuclear weapons.<\/p>\n<p>The two officials with knowledge of the proposal spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door negotiations between Iranian and Pakistani officials this weekend. Iran\u2019s proposal was first reported by the Axios news outlet.<\/p>\n<p>The offer emerged as Iran\u2019s foreign minister visited Russia, which has long been a key backer of Tehran. It\u2019s unclear what, if any, assistance Moscow might offer now.<\/p>\n<p>Iran\u2019s ability to choke off traffic in the <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/strait-of-hormuz\">Strait of Hormuz<\/a>, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf, has proved one of its biggest strategic advantages in a war that has often boiled down to which side can take more pain.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/oil-prices-crude-iran-war-4de9058b58ed944a4113dfb2cf6369c8\">Oil prices<\/a> have risen steadily since the war began, and <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/stranded-ships-iran-war-hormuz-b1b22b26312c7ea2b70b3f542f235e77\">tankers full of crude became stranded<\/a> in the Gulf, unable to safely pass through the strait to reach global distribution points.<\/p>\n<p>On Monday, the spot price of Brent crude, the international standard, closed above $108 per barrel, about 50% higher than when the war began.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Dozens of nations push for reopening of strait<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Dozens of nations repeated calls to open the critical waterway in a joint statement led by Bahrain.<\/p>\n<p>United Nations Secretary-General Ant\u00f3nio Guterres told the Security Council on Monday that the humanitarian toll is mounting.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese pressures are cascading into empty fuel tanks, empty shelves \u2014 and empty plates,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>German Chancellor Friedrich Merz criticized the U.S. for going into the war with what he said was no strategy. \u201cThe problem with conflicts like these is always the same: It\u2019s not just about getting in. You also have to get out,\u201d Merz said.<\/p>\n<p>French Foreign Minister Jean-No\u00ebl Barrot blasted all sides. He said the crisis began after the U.S. and Israel struck Iran without clear goals \u201cin a manner that flouts international law.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But he said Iran is responsible for closing the passageway. \u201cStraits are the arteries of the world. They are not the property of any individual,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Top Iranian diplomat meets Putin in Russia<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Trump last week <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/iran-us-israel-war-what-to-know-beb5625f8537ceaf22c061cf073210aa\">indefinitely extended the ceasefire<\/a> the U.S. and Iran agreed to on April 7 that has largely halted fighting. But a permanent settlement remains elusive.<\/p>\n<p>Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg, Russian state news agency Tass said. Putin praised the Iranian people as \u201cbravely and heroically fighting for their sovereignty,\u201d and he said Russia would do everything possible to bring peace to the Middle East, Tass reported.<\/p>\n<p>Araghchi told a Russian state TV reporter that the U.S. and its leaders \u201chave achieved none of their goals\u201d in the war. \u201cThat\u2019s why they ask for negotiation,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are now considering it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The meeting came as Pakistan has been seeking to revive <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/us-iran-war-hormuz-israel-pakistan-ceasefire-april-26-2026-9f7bcaf20c42b56d3dba4b504936f7ee\">stalled talks between Iran and the U.S.<\/a>, and negotiations had been expected in Islamabad over the weekend. Instead, Trump called off a trip by his envoys and suggested the talks could take place by phone instead.<\/p>\n<p>Iran wants to persuade Oman, which shares the strait with Iran, to support a mechanism to <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/strait-of-hormuz-iran-tolls-oil-3ef5dcd907122922db714d318c35317e\">collect tolls from vessels<\/a> passing through the strait, according to a regional official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter.<\/p>\n<p>Oman\u2019s response was not immediately clear.<\/p>\n<p>The official, who is involved in mediation efforts, also said Iran insisted on ending the U.S. blockade before new talks and that Pakistan-led mediators are trying to bridge significant gaps between the countries.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Trump says Iran offered a \u2018much better\u2019 proposal<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Trump told journalists Saturday that after he called off a trip by his envoys to Pakistan, Iran sent a \u201cmuch better\u201d proposal.<\/p>\n<p>He did not elaborate but stressed that one of his conditions is that Iran \u201cwill not have a nuclear weapon.\u201d Iran insists its program is peaceful, but the U.S. wants to remove Tehran\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/iran-nuclear-uranium-enriched-trump-war-1fd6de24bd1e6c3a4945d58d3f777462\">stockpile of highly enriched uranium<\/a>, which could be used to build a bomb, should Tehran choose to pursue one.<\/p>\n<p>Since the war began, at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran and at least 2,521 people in Lebanon, where fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group resumed two days after the Iran war started. Another 23 people have been killed in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon, 13 U.S. service members in the region and six U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon have been killed.<\/p>\n<p>The ceasefire between <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/lebanon-israel-hezbollah-us-talks-ceasefire-washington-e7f26e207fc7543fe1f25a5318ff9ce3\">Israel and Hezbollah<\/a> has been extended by three weeks. Despite the truce, both sides continue to strike each other.<\/p>\n<p>Hezbollah has not participated in the Washington-brokered diplomacy.<\/p>\n<p>___<\/p>\n<p>Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Becatoros reported from Athens, Greece. Associated Press writers Farnoush Amiri in New York, Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and Jonathan Cooper in Phoenix contributed to this report.<\/p>\n<p><!-- CONTENT END 1 -->\n        <\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/religionnews.com\/2026\/04\/28\/iran-offers-to-reopen-strait-of-hormuz-if-us-lifts-its-blockade-and-the-war-ends-officials-say\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>CAIRO (AP) \u2014 Iran offered to end its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz if the U.S. lifts its blockade on the country and ends the war in a proposal that would postpone discussions on the Islamic Republic\u2019s nuclear program, two regional officials said Monday. U.S. President Donald Trump seems unlikely to accept the offer, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9989,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9988","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9988","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9988"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9988\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9988"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9988"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/banitoday.com\/hi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9988"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}