The Trump administration seemed unlikely on Tuesday, April 28, to accept Iran’s offer to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz if the US lifts its blockade on the country.
The proposal would postpone discussions on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program, something that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio appeared to rule out in a Fox News interview on Monday, April 27.
“We have to ensure that any deal that is made, any agreement that is made, is one that definitively prevents them from sprinting towards a nuclear weapon at any point,” he said of the proposal, which was delivered to the US by Pakistan.
The White House said US President Donald Trump’s national security team discussed the offer and Trump would address it later.
The offer emerged Monday as Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi visited Russia, which has long been a key backer of Tehran. It was unclear what, if any, assistance Moscow might offer now.
Since the war began, at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran and at least 2,521 people in Lebanon, where fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group resumed two days after the Iran war started.
Another 23 people have been killed in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Sixteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon, 13 US service members in the region and six UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon have been killed.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio was asked in a Fox News interview about Iran’s latest proposal, which would postpone discussions on its nuclear program but end its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz if the US lifts its blockade and ends the war.
“There’s no doubt in my mind that at some point in the future if this radical clerical regime remains in charge in Iran, they will decide they want a nuclear weapon,” Rubio said.
“That fundamental issue still has to be confronted,” he said. “That still remains the core issue here.”
Asked if he thinks the Iranians are serious about a deal, Rubio said they are skilled negotiators looking to buy time.
“We can’t let them get away with it,” Rubio said. “We have to ensure that any deal that is made, any agreement that is made, is one that definitively prevents them from sprinting towards a nuclear weapon at any point.”
As Washington reviews a new proposal from Tehran, Iran’s Defence Ministry spokesperson said the United States has lost its ability to “dictate” what other countries do.
“The US is no longer in a position to dictate its policy to independent nations,” Deputy Defence Minister Reza Talaei-Nik told state TV. He added that Washington would eventually “accept that it must abandon its illegal and irrational demands.”
Talaei-Nik also said Iran is ready to share its defensive weapons capabilities with “independent countries, especially members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).”
“We are ready to share the experience of America’s defeat with other members of the organisation,” the Deputy Defence Minister said during a meeting of SCO defence ministers in Kyrgyzstan.
Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations has said Iran is within its rights to control traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, while accusing Western nations of hypocrisy and piracy.
“There was an attempt to place full responsibility on Iran, as though it was Iran that attacked its neighbours,” Russia’s UN envoy Vassily Nebenzia said. “In wartime, a coastal state facing attack may restrict navigation in its territorial waters for security reasons.”
Nebenzia also likened Western countries to pirates and criticised European states backing Ukrainian strikes on Russian trade vessels in the Black Sea. “Unlike pirates who sail under black flags with skull and crossbones, Western countries try to mask their unlawful actions by citing unilateral coercive measures,” he said.
Israeli air strikes targeted areas north of the Litani River in Lebanon on Monday, Al-Jazeera reported.
The attacks have caused a wave of displacement and have led to traffic on the main roads linking Nabatieh, Sidon and Beirut, the report added.
(With inputs from Associated Press)
This post was last modified on April 28, 2026 3:26 pm