A state of relative calm prevailed around the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday after days of sporadic flare-ups, but Tehran offered no response to Washington’s latest peace proposal — a day after Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he expected a reply within hours.
The proposal, delivered to Iran on Friday, would formally end more than two months of fighting before talks open on more contentious issues, including Iran’s nuclear programme. With President Donald Trump due to begin a long-awaited visit to China next week, US officials are pushing to draw a line under a conflict that has thrown global energy markets into turmoil.
Recent days have produced the largest flare-ups since the April 7 ceasefire took hold. The US military said Friday it had struck two Iran-linked vessels attempting to enter an Iranian port, with a fighter jet hitting their smokestacks and forcing them to turn back. Iran’s Tasnim news agency cited a military source warning more clashes were possible.
A CIA assessment leaked to the Washington Post indicated Iran would not suffer severe economic pressure from the US blockade of Iranian ports for about another four months, raising questions over Trump’s leverage. A senior US intelligence official disputed the characterisation, calling the reported claims “false.”
The United Arab Emirates intercepted two ballistic missiles and three drones from Iran on Friday, with three people sustaining moderate injuries. Iran has stepped up attacks on Gulf states hosting US military bases in response to Trump’s “Project Freedom” escort initiative, which he paused after 48 hours.
Rubio met Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome and questioned why Italy and other allies were not backing Washington’s effort to reopen the strait, warning of a dangerous precedent if Tehran were allowed to control an international waterway. Speaking in Stockholm, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said European countries shared the goal of stopping Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and were working to bridge differences with Washington.
Alongside diplomacy, the US Treasury on Friday sanctioned 10 individuals and companies — including several in China and Hong Kong — for aiding Iranian weapons procurement. Treasury warned it could impose secondary sanctions on foreign financial institutions, including those linked to China’s independent oil refineries.
Trump said Thursday the April 7 ceasefire was still holding despite the flare-ups. Iran has accused the US of breaching it. “Every time a diplomatic solution is on the table, the US opts for a reckless military adventure,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Friday.
Source: Ada Derana / Reuters.
