Iran Tables New Hormuz Proposal: Reopen Strait in Exchange for U.S. Lifting Naval Blockade, Nuclear Talks Deferred

Iran has put forward a new diplomatic proposal to the United States, offering to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the war in exchange for the U.S. lifting its naval blockade of Iranian ports — while proposing that nuclear negotiations be deferred to a later phase. The proposal was conveyed through Pakistani mediators and was confirmed by the White House on April 27, 2026.

The plan calls for extending the existing ceasefire so both parties can work toward a permanent end to the fighting, with nuclear talks to begin only after the U.S. blockade is lifted. The Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi had been conducting a series of meetings with mediators in Pakistan, Oman, and Moscow over the weekend prior to the proposal being tabled. On Sunday, Araghchi held talks with Omani officials in Muscat focused specifically on Strait of Hormuz transit arrangements, then returned to Islamabad for a second round of talks.

The Iranian proposal faces a key structural obstacle from Washington’s perspective: lifting the blockade and ending the war would remove President Trump’s primary leverage in any future nuclear negotiations, since the U.S. demands that Iran suspend uranium enrichment for at least a decade and remove its enriched uranium stockpile. Secretary of State Marco Rubio appeared to dampen expectations about any Iranian proposal to clear the strait. The White House stated the U.S. holds the cards and will only make a deal that prevents Iran from having a nuclear weapon.

For the global shipping and energy markets, the stakes of this diplomatic standoff could not be higher. The Strait of Hormuz, in peacetime, carries approximately 20% of the world’s traded oil and gas. The spot price of Brent crude was trading at around $108 per barrel as of April 28, 2026 — nearly 50% higher than when the war began on 28 February. U.S. average gasoline prices stand at $4.11 per gallon as of April 27, up from around $3 per gallon at the start of the war.