US President Donald Trump said on Saturday he was studying a new peace proposal put forward by Iran, even as he questioned whether the offer would prove sufficient to end a war that has reshaped energy markets and sent alarm bells across the Middle East.
Trump told reporters in Florida before posting on Truth Social that he had been briefed on a “draft deal” put forward by Tehran. During the same hour, he distanced himself from any optimism that a solution was imminent.
“I will soon review the plan that Iran just sent us, but I cannot imagine it being acceptable in that it has not yet paid a big enough price for what it has done to humanity and the world over the last 47 years,” Trump wrote.
The Iran war stalled as oil prices rose above $108 a barrel
The diplomatic impasse comes as Brent crude settled at around $108 a barrel on Friday, posting a weekly gain of 2.7 percent. Gasoline prices in the US have climbed well above $4 a gallon, increasing political pressure on the White House ahead of the November election.
The war, which began with US and Israeli strikes in late February, has killed thousands across the Middle East, most in Iran and Lebanon. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas normally passes, is at the heart of the diplomatic standoff.
Iran has demanded that Washington end its naval blockade of Iranian ports before Tehran’s leadership considers reopening the waterway. The White House, in turn, insists the blockade is having results by stifling Iran’s economy and cutting its oil revenues.
“We just had a conversation with Iran. We’ll see what happens,” Trump told reporters Friday, adding, “But I would say I’m not happy.”
US naval blockade diverts 48 vessels in 20 days
US Central Command confirmed on Saturday that 48 vessels had been diverted in the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz area over the previous 20 days as part of ongoing enforcement operations. USS New Orleans, an amphibious transport dock ship, operated in the Arabian Sea as part of a blockade deployment.
Washington says its naval operations specifically target Iran’s ports and coast and do not constitute a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz itself, which Tehran and several international observers have disputed.
Iran’s foreign minister hinted that diplomacy remains possible, but set conditions. Abbas Araghchi said Tehran is ready to continue diplomatic efforts provided the Americans drop what he described as “exaggerated demands, threatening rhetoric and provocative actions.” He added that Iran’s military remains “on full alert”.
Trump’s ‘We’re like pirates’ remark prompts sharp condemnation of Tehran
Iran’s Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the remarks Trump made at the Forum Club dinner in Palm Beaches, Florida, where he offered a candid and controversial account of US naval seizure operations.
Recounting what he described as military capture at sea, Trump said: “Turn your ship around! Evacuate your engine room immediately!” and you see all these guys running out of there.”
He continued, “Now they’re five miles away, one shot into the engine room, they blew up the engine room, the ship stopped. The ship … they used tugs and then we landed on it. Then on top of everything else, we land on it and took over the ship, took over the cargo, took over the oil. It’s a very profitable business.”
Trump added: “Who would have thought we’d be doing this? We’re like pirates. We’re kind of like pirates.”
He also framed the confrontation in broader terms: “But we are not playing around, because you know, Iran has been pressuring everyone around for 47 years. They are thugs.”
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Sunday that Trump “openly described the illegal seizure of Iranian vessels as ‘piracy,’ brazenly boasting that ‘we are acting like pirates,'” calling it “no verbal slip” but “a direct and condemning admission of the criminal nature of their actions against international shipping.”
Baghaei called on the international community, UN member states and UN Secretary-General António Guterres to “resolutely reject any normalization of such flagrant violations of international law”.
Analysts dispute the claims of Iran’s top White House divisions
Trump has repeatedly suggested that peace talks are stalling because of infighting among Iran’s leadership, a claim that several analysts have disputed. He made other remarks about uncertainty about who US officials are negotiating with in Tehran.
“They have no radar, they have no leaders, in fact all their leaders are gone as well,” he said. “It’s part of our problem, heck we don’t know who we’re dealing with. They call ‘That’s so-and-so Mohammed’ and I say ‘Are you the leader? We’re looking, we’re looking for a leader.’ It’s the only country in the world that no one wants to be the leader of.”
Eurasia Group analysts backed off from framing the White House. “Contradictions are not the source of the current impasse in the talks, as the Trump administration has suggested,” wrote Cliff Kupchan and Gregory Brew. “Negotiations are moving slowly as Iran’s leadership seeks leverage and a better offer from the US.”
Iran cuts oil output as global shipping routes adjust to conflict
According to a senior Iranian official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the information, Iran has begun proactively cutting oil production as storage capacity fills up. The country is curtailing production past capacity limits rather than waiting for tanks to reach peak levels, a strategy that reflects decades of experience managing sanctions and wartime economic pressure.
Global shipping was forced to reorganize around the blocked waterway. MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co., the world’s largest container carrier, has announced plans for a new service connecting Europe to Middle Eastern ports via truck traffic via Saudi Arabia and smaller vessels operating in the Persian Gulf.
An Indian-linked supertanker carrying liquefied petroleum gas made a rare attempt to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, reflecting India’s efforts to manage an acute energy crisis caused by the conflict.
The MT Eureka oil tanker has been hijacked off the Shabwa coast of Yemen by an unidentified armed group, the Aden-based Yemeni coast guard said, with the vessel reportedly heading for Somalia. The European Union has warned that the Iran conflict is fueling a wider resurgence of piracy off the coast of Somalia.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio approved expedited arms transfers to Israel, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, bypassing the standard congressional review process to expedite air defense missiles and laser guidance systems to allies in the region.
