Iran Says It Can Reopen Hormuz in Two Days if US Meets Its Conditions

Iran has said it could reopen the Strait of Hormuz within just two days if the United States accepts its conditions. The foreign ministry set out the position on Monday. When Tehran first put the idea to Washington through Qatar in September, it had proposed a seven-day timeline.

"The possibility of implementing this plan in two days is another indication of Iran's good-faith approach," foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said. "We have stated that, if Iran's demands are met, it would be possible to restore security to the Strait of Hormuz and resume the negotiating process within a short period," he added.

Baghaei said an exchange of messages with the US is ongoing via mediators and that "everything depends" on the US side accepting Iran's demands. "Only then can we discuss the subsequent stages," he explained.

Tehran's conditions include ending the war on all fronts, unfreezing Iranian assets abroad, lifting sanctions on its oil sector, and ending the US naval blockade of Iranian ports.

In an Al Jazeera interview released on Sunday, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi set out further requirements. Washington must also accept a new transit route through the strait agreed between Iran and Oman, reduce US troop numbers in the region, and remove sanctions imposed since August. From August onwards Washington has rolled out a fresh wave of measures, which it described as the "economic asphyxiation" of Iran.

Since the Iran war broke out in late February, Tehran has claimed it maintained control over Hormuz, regularly targeting vessels that attempt to cross without its authorisation. The US, meanwhile, imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports.

Even as the diplomatic activity continues, both Washington and Tel Aviv have intensified military threats. On Saturday, President Donald Trump said he still had to "take care" of one or two targets, including Pickaxe Mountain in central Iran, a site Washington suspects houses nuclear infrastructure, which Tehran denies.

At Monday's briefing Baghaei warned that "any act of aggression against Iran, any military attack against Iran, by whatever means, will be met with a powerful, immediate and comprehensive response from us."

Amid the diplomatic push, Iran's deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi travelled to Doha on Monday.