US-Iran Talks

Aboard Air Force One returning from China, the president said Tehran must show "real commitment" and signaled he may lift sanctions on Chinese firms buying Iranian oil.

According to the Fars news agency, Tehran also demands a relief from international economic sanctions and formal control over the critical Strait of Hormuz.

The meeting between a US president and Xi will be the first in nearly a decade. On the agenda: pressure on Iran, trade and Taiwan. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman called the US sanctions on Chinese companies "illegal." A senior Taiwanese official told Bloomberg: "We fear being on the menu."

The US president says he rejected Iran's response after Tehran reportedly offered a 30-day negotiating window, sanctions relief and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, while refusing to dismantle its nuclear facilities.

Iran is demanding a temporary ceasefire and the gradual reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, citing severe shortages of food, medicine and cash, and warning of the risk of hunger in parts of the country. The US is prepared to partially ease the naval blockade and release frozen funds, but is conditioning this on guarantees regarding the nuclear issue and the consent of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as well.

Diplomatic officials in the region believe the reason for the delay in Iran’s response is Tehran’s demand to make changes to the emerging document before conveying its official position on it. According to the same officials, Iran is also walking back previous understandings regarding a ban on enrichment and the handover of enriched uranium.

The Wall Street Journal has revealed the document Washington sent Tehran, which demands that Iran fully divest itself of highly enriched material and stop enrichment for 15 years. In return, the US would end the blockade and lift some sanctions on Iran.

Netanyahu stressed at the start of the cabinet meeting that Israel and the US were acting in “full coordination” on the Iranian issue. “The most important goal is to remove all enriched material from Iran.” Trump said pressure on Tehran was continuing and that the Iranians “want to make a deal.” The US president made clear: “We will not allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon. They have one week to reach a deal.”

The US will release frozen Iranian funds to finance imports of basic goods that will ease Iran's humanitarian situation. The Americans are willing to ease the naval blockade, but only if they receive guarantees that agreements reached by the Iranian political echelon will not be canceled by the Revolutionary Guards. One issue remains unresolved: the payment Iran is demanding from ships that pass through the strait.

In a late-night Truth Social post, the president froze the Hormuz operation while keeping the blockade in force, citing major progress toward a final agreement with Tehran.