A senior US official says Donald Trump is unhappy with Iran’s latest proposal, which would postpone nuclear discussions until the war ends. Energy disruptions and tanker traffic remain central to the pressure for peace.
US President Donald Trump is unhappy with the latest Iranian proposal aimed at ending the two-month war, a US official said, adding uncertainty at a moment when both sides are under mounting pressure.
According to the official, Iran’s latest idea would keep the nuclear file off the table until the fighting ends and disputes over shipping in the Gulf are resolved.. The White House, meanwhile, signaled it wants to be firm on conditions, with spokeswoman Olivia Wales saying the US “will not negotiate through the press” and that it has “been clear about our redlines.” For readers watching the conflict from afar, the message is straightforward: even when talks are mentioned, the pathway is still narrow and tightly controlled.
The conflict began in February and has already triggered knock-on effects far beyond the battlefield.. Energy supplies and fuel availability have been disrupted, contributing to higher inflation pressures.. Thousands have also been killed, according to the broader assessment of the conflict’s human cost.. Those stakes help explain why any shift in negotiation language matters—because it can influence shipping decisions, insurance risk, and how quickly crude and refined products move through key corridors.
A central point in the proposal is the staging of negotiations.. Senior Iranian officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, described an approach that would first link progress on war-related issues to subsequent steps on other disputes.. In that version of events, negotiators would begin by addressing the US and Israeli war on Iran, along with guarantees intended to prevent a renewed conflict.. Only after that would the discussion move toward the US Navy’s blockade of Iran’s trade by sea and the future of the Strait of Hormuz, an area Iran wants reopened under its control.
In Washington, the nuclear angle remains politically and strategically sensitive—especially given the history.. A 2015 agreement between Iran and multiple countries, including the US, sharply limited Iran’s nuclear program while allowing it to maintain that its activities were for peaceful, civilian purposes.. That deal unraveled after Trump withdrew from it in his first term.. With that context, Iran’s suggestion to set aside nuclear talks at the start may be designed to reduce immediate friction—but it also risks clashing with US expectations that any deal must address core concerns early.
Even hopes for diplomacy appear strained by recent political decisions.. The administration scrapped a planned weekend visit by Steve Witkoff, the president’s special envoy, and Jared Kushner, his son-in-law, to Islamabad—where Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi had been shuttling between stops.. Araqchi was reported to have visited Oman as well before going to Russia, where he met President Vladimir Putin and received support from a longstanding ally.. For negotiators, these moves suggest competing channels of influence, not a single, unified track toward compromise.
The economic signals are also not subtle.. Oil prices resumed their upward movement, extending early gains in Asia trade, as markets focused on whether crude can physically move through the Strait of Hormuz.. A key point for traders is that rhetoric does not refill storage or move cargoes—actual flows do.. Ship-tracking data indicated at least six tankers loaded with Iranian oil were forced back to Iran by the US blockade in recent days, reinforcing the sense that disruption is not just a risk; it is already affecting traffic.
Ship movement numbers tell a similar story.. Before the war, estimates suggested roughly 125 to 140 ships crossed the strait each day.. But only seven have done so in the past day, and none of them were carrying oil bound for the global market, according to tracking and satellite analysis cited in reporting.. Iran’s foreign ministry condemned US seizures of Iran-linked tankers as “outright legalisation of piracy and armed robbery on the high seas,” portraying maritime enforcement as an escalation.
For the Trump administration, the negotiation challenge is also political at home.. With approval ratings falling, the president faces domestic pressure to end a war where public explanations have shifted over time.. A proposal that delays nuclear discussions may not satisfy critics who want a clear, measurable path to results.. The administration’s stance—seeking talks without press-driven negotiation and emphasizing “redlines”—suggests it may still want binding commitments rather than phased discussions that stretch into uncertainty.
Looking ahead, the central question for any ceasefire or settlement remains whether both sides treat staging as momentum—or as a way to postpone the toughest decisions.. If the conflict continues to constrain tanker traffic and keep the Strait of Hormuz under strain, market pressure and political pressure will likely harden, even as diplomats move between capitals.. Misryoum will continue monitoring how the next round of diplomatic engagement develops, and whether either side is willing to trade immediate concessions for a durable off-ramp from the war.