Araghchi announces vital trade chokepoint open to all commercial vessels, Trump sees deal ‘soon’ to end war
A vessel at the Strait of Hormuz, off the coast of Oman’s Musandam province. PHOTO: REUTERS
DUBAI/WASHINGTON:
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Friday the Strait of Hormuz was open following a ceasefire agreement in Lebanon, while US President Donald Trump said talks could take place this weekend and he believed a deal to end the Iran war would come “soon”.
Araghchi said in a post on X the strait was open for all commercial vessels for the remainder of the US-brokered 10-day truce that was agreed on Thursday between Israel and Lebanon to halt fighting between Israeli forces and Iran-backed Hezbollah.
Shortly after Araghchi’s statement, Trump posted on Truth Social: “IRAN HAS JUST ANNOUNCED THAT THE STRAIT OF IRAN IS FULLY OPEN AND READY FOR PASSAGE.”
But statements from both sides left uncertainty over how quickly shipping could resume. Trump said a US blockade of ships sailing to Iranian ports – announced after talks with Tehran last weekend ended without agreement – would remain until “our transaction with Iran is 100% complete”.
Iran responded sharply, with Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei warning that Tehran would take “necessary reciprocal measures” if a maritime blockade continued.
Vessel traffic data showed a group of around 20 ships, including container ships, bulk carriers, and tankers, moving through the Gulf toward the Strait of Hormuz. It was unclear whether they would be stopped or allowed to pass.
It also was unclear how the two sides would address Iran’s nuclear program, which has been a key sticking point in talks so far.
Trump told Reuters that the US will work with Iran to recover its enriched uranium and bring it back to the United States.
“We’re going to get it together. We’re going to go in with Iran, at a nice leisurely pace, and go down and start excavating with big machinery… We’ll bring it back to the United States,” Trump said during a phone interview.
He referred to “nuclear dust” and added that it would be retrieved “very soon.”
Trump’s mention of “nuclear dust” is a reference to what he believes remains after the United States and Israel bombed Iran’s nuclear installations in June last year.
Iran is believed to possess more than 900 pounds of uranium enriched up to 60% purity. The issue of Iran’s nuclear program has been one of the thorniest issues in US-Iran negotiations.
Responding to a report that the United States was considering a $20 billion cash for uranium deal, Trump said: “It’s totally false. No money is changing hands.”
Iran denied agreeing to transfer its enriched uranium to the United States.
“Iran’s enriched uranium is not going to be transferred anywhere; transferring uranium to the United States has not been an option for us,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei later told state TV.
US-Israeli strikes on Iran began on February 28, triggering Iranian attacks on Gulf neighbors and reigniting the Israel-Hezbollah conflict in Lebanon.
Thousands have been killed and the conflict effectively shut the Strait of Hormuzthrough which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas usually transitsthreatening the worst oil shock in history.
Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said on Friday that a US-Iran peace agreement is “more than 80 per cent” complete but both sides need to show flexibility.
Speaking at the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Turkey, Dar said Pakistan “will leave no stone unturned” in its efforts to achieve peace.
“What Pakistan wants to see is not the extension of the ceasefire, it’s permanent end of the war,” he said.
Dar added that he thinks “we have already crossed more than 80 per cent of the work done,” but that “both sides need to show flexibility.”
Meanwhile, a volley of European leaders have praised the ceasefire deal announced last week with the US, Israel and Iran but pressed for a longer-lasting resolution.
Ministers from the UK, France, Germany and Italy announced an agreement in principle to send naval forces to the Persian Gulf to protect merchant shipping.
French President Emmanuel Macron was adamant that any such mission would exclude Washington, while German Chancellor Frederich Merz said he hoped to see US participation.
Macron declared the fruitful negotiations were “encouraging even if we must treat them with prudence” on Friday. “All that goes in the right direction,” Macron told reporters while speaking alongside regional counterparts in Paris after a virtual meeting with leaders from 49 countries.
He reiterated demands for the “immediate unconditional opening of the strait,” “free passage” and “total respect of law of the sea.”
The German chancellor echoed a similar plea.
“The skyrocketing energy prices must be brought down,” said Merz. “This war must not turn into a transatlantic stress test.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer welcomed the lifted Iranian blockade on the key channel, urging a “workable and long-lasting agreement. “We have a very simple message: The world needs the strait open to keep prices down,” he said. “We’ve got to see a return to talks.”
OIL PRICES TUMBLE, STOCKS JUMP
Oil prices CLc1, LCOc1 fell about 10%, and global stocks jumped on the news that marine traffic might flow through the strait again. O/RMKTS/GLOB
Shipping companies cautiously welcomed Iran’s announcement but said they would require clarifications, including about the risk of mines, before vessels move through the entry point to the Gulf.
The US Navy warned seafarers that the mine threat in parts of the waterway was not fully understood and said they should consider avoiding the area.
A senior Iranian official said ships could pass only under coordination with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
After a video conference on Friday, more than a dozen countries said they were willing to join an international mission to protect shipping in the strait when conditions permit, Britain said.
DIPLOMACY PROGRESS
Trump told Reuters there could probably be more talks this weekend. Some diplomats said that was unlikely given the logistics of gathering in Islamabad, where the talks are expected to take place.
Troops were deployed along routes into Islamabad on Friday, though roads remained open and the government had not ordered business closures, as it did ahead of the previous meeting.
A Pakistani source involved in mediation efforts said there was progress in backdoor diplomacy and that an upcoming meeting could result in an initial memorandum of understanding, followed by a comprehensive deal within 60 days.
“Both sides are agreeing in principle. And technical bits come later,” the source said on condition of anonymity.
A senior Iranian official told Reuters there had been an agreement on unfreezing billions of dollars in Iranian assets as part of the accord, without giving a timeline.
At last weekend’s talks, the US proposed a 20-year suspension of all Iranian nuclear activity, while Iran suggested a halt of three to five years, according to people familiar with the proposals.
Iran has demanded the lifting of international sanctions, while Washington has pressed for any highly enriched uranium to be removed from Iran. Two Iranian sources have said there were signs of a compromise that could remove part of the stockpile.
Trump told Reuters the US might not act quickly. “We’re going to go in with Iran, at a nice leisurely pace, and go down and start excavating with big machinery… We’ll bring it back to the United States,” he said in a phone interview.
He mentioned “nuclear dust”, a reference to the aftermath of bombing strikes by the US and Israel on Iran’s nuclear installations in June last year.
Despite Trump’s optimism, Iranian sources told Reuters that “gaps remained to be resolved” before a preliminary deal, while senior clerics struck a defiant tone during Friday prayers.
“Our people do not negotiate while being humiliated,” cleric Ahmad Khatami said.
LEBANON CEASEFIRE GOES INTO EFFECT
The US-backed ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon appeared to be largely holding on Friday, despite Lebanese Army reports of some Israeli violations. Paramedics said an Israeli drone strike killed one person in southern Lebanon.
The conflict was reignited on March 2 when Hezbollah opened fire on Israel in support of Tehran, prompting an Israeli offensive that authorities say has killed nearly 2,300 people.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military on the reported ceasefire violations.
(With input from News Desk)
