Iran rejects Trump's terms of deal to lift Hormuz blockade

“Iran rejects Trump's terms of deal to lift Hormuz blockade Submitted by Sean Mathews on Fri, 05/29/2026 - 19:46 Trump says he will lift blockade of the strait in return for no tolls in Hormuz and Iranian uranium, which Tehran rejects US President Donald Trump delivers remarks during a Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, on 25 May 2026 (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images/AFP) Off US President Donald Trump said he was lifting a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, even as Iran denied his claim that negotiations were taking place on the fate of its nuclear programme, a resolution to which Trump conditioned lifting the naval siege. Trump’s murky statement on Friday is one of several he has made in recent days suggesting a deal to end the war is at hand, only for the stalemate in the Strait of Hormuz to continue as a fragile ceasefire between the two sides prevents a wider flare-up in fighting. Trump conditioned the lifting of the US’s blockade on Iran agreeing not to charge fees in the Strait of Hormuz and allowing the US access to damaged nuclear facilities in order to destroy Iran’s highly enriched uranium. The US bombed three Iranian facilities in June 2025. “The enriched material, sometimes referred to as “Nuclear Dust,” which is buried deep underground with virtually collapsed mountains…will be unearthed by the United States…in close coordination and conjunction with the Islamic Republic of Iran, plus the International Atomic Energy Agency, and DESTROYED,” Trump wrote on his Truthsocial platform on Friday. As a result, Trump said that “Ships caught in the Strait due to our amazing and unprecedented Naval Blockade, which will now be lifted, may start the process of “heading home!” But Iran said on Friday that “no negotiations" were taking place over its nuclear programme, and a deal had not been finalised. "Regarding the understanding, as I said while speaking to you, exchanges of messages are continuing, but no final agreement has been reached yet," Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told state media. 'Mixture of truth and lies' Iran's Fars news agency, which is close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, said Trump's latest comments were a "mixture of truth and lies”. It said Trump’s remarks that the deal included the extraction and destruction of Iran’s highly enriched uranium were “fundamentally baseless". The real reason Iran and the US cannot end the war: Money Read More » The global energy markets have, so far, responded to Trump's optimistic posts. Trump said that he was going to the White House situation room “to make a final determination” on extending the ceasefire based on the points he laid out. Brent Crude, the international benchmark, fell 1.5 percent on Friday. It is down about 15 percent since the start of the month on expectations that Iran and the US will expand their ceasefire, allowing vessels and energy to flow through the Strait of Hormuz again. But the Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed on both sides. Iranian vessels and those loaded with Iranian oil are not able to transit the waterway because of the US’s blockade. But the other 2,000 ships stuck in the Gulf are not transiting because of Iran’s own stranglehold over Hormuz. The Islamic Republic has allowed some vessels to transit if they pay a toll or negotiate directly with Tehran. Trump’s social media post rejected this system. “The Hormuz Strait must be immediately open, no tolls, for unrestricted shipping traffic, in both directions,” Trump added, calling on Iran to remove any mines in the Strait of Hormuz. "Trump claimed that Iran was obligated to open the Strait of Hormuz without tolls, even though no such clause appears in the text of the agreement," Fars said. Iran wants sanctions relief and the unfreezing of billions of dollars in funds held abroad as part of any ceasefire extension. Such an agreement, according to reports and analysts, would only be a stepping stone for deeper talks. Trump ruled out the unlocking of frozen funds in a social media post, saying, “No money will be exchanged, until further notice”. It’s unclear whether that language applies only to frozen funds or to waivers allowing Iran to sell its oil on the global market without sanctions. Senior diplomats were huddling as talks progressed. Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar travelled to Washington, DC, where he met his counterpart, Marco Rubio, on Friday. Islamabad has been a key intermediary between the US and Iran. Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held a call with his Omani counterpart, Badr Albusaidi, on Friday. Muscat was mediating between the two sides before the US and Israel attacked Iran in February. This week, Trump threatened to “blow up” Oman if it agreed to work on a fee system with Iran for the Strait of Hormuz. War on Iran News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0

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