US, Iran quietly negotiate broader deal linking Strait of Hormuz reopening to nuclear inspections

End-of-war negotiations between the United States and Iran are expanding beyond a simple truce over the Strait of Hormuz into a broader framework that would address Iran's nuclear program as well. A new draft proposal under discussion would have Iran reopen the strait and allow international nuclear inspectors into the country, in exchange for the US lifting its maritime blockade and easing sanctions against Tehran.

AP reported Monday, citing three regional officials and two US officials, that mediating countries are working to broker a new agreement between Washington and Tehran to end the fighting and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The core of the draft under discussion is a swap: Iran reopens the strait while the US lifts its naval blockade of Iranian ports. Easing US sanctions on Iran is also on the table.

Washington is also pressing for concessions on Iran's nuclear program. According to AP, the US demands include allowing international nuclear inspectors into Iran. The US has made clear it cannot reach a final agreement with Iran unless the nuclear issue is resolved.

This goes further than the negotiations conducted until recently. Until now, Iran had focused its negotiating position on reopening the strait in exchange for the US lifting the blockade, unfreezing Iranian assets and easing oil export sanctions.

The US, however, has signaled that resolving the Hormuz issue alone is not enough. The Trump administration has framed preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons as a central justification for the war, and it insists that any end-of-war agreement must include concrete measures on Iran's nuclear program.

AP reported that President Donald Trump is willing to allow sanctions relief and the partial release of frozen assets if there is tangible progress on the nuclear issue. Iran is also showing some flexibility on the matter.

The shape of the negotiations has thus shifted from a simple Hormuz-for-sanctions swap to a three-way package linking the strait, sanctions and the nuclear program. Under the emerging structure, the US would ease the maritime blockade and economic sanctions if Iran reopens the strait and agrees to verification measures on its nuclear activities.

If nuclear inspections become a reality, Trump would gain a strong basis for declaring an end to the war. He could point to securing a verification mechanism over Iran's nuclear program as a concrete achievement, rather than simply ending the conflict in exchange for reopening the strait.

Both sides also have converging interests. The US faces pressure to wind down a prolonged war and ease high oil prices ahead of November midterm elections, while Iran is suffering economic strain from the US maritime blockade and oil sanctions.

The biggest obstacle to a deal, however, remains the question of who moves first.

Iran insists the US must lift the blockade and sanctions before it will act on the nuclear issue or reopen the strait, while the US wants to verify Iranian nuclear concessions before easing any restrictions. AP reported that the two sides still have significant differences over the timing and sequencing of any measures.

Distrust among US officials over whether Iran will actually follow through on any agreement also persists. The ceasefire MOU the two sides signed in June collapsed within days, setting a troubling precedent.

That agreement included a provision for 60 days of negotiations on Iran's nuclear program, but fresh clashes in the Strait of Hormuz effectively nullified the deal. US officials have cited Iran's attacks on commercial vessels — which they say violated the interim agreement — as grounds for skepticism about the durability of any new commitments.

Iran's recently proposed "seven-day plan" has also been rejected by Trump for now. Under that proposal, Iran offered to reopen the strait within seven days if the US lifted the blockade, unfroze Iranian assets and eased oil sales sanctions.

Back-channel talks are nonetheless continuing. Iranian state media reported that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is scheduled to meet with Qatari mediators in New York to discuss the state of negotiations. UN Secretary-General António Guterres also plans to meet with Araghchi to support mediation efforts.

A senior US official told AP that Trump is willing to pursue a non-military solution if one is achievable.

Iran has also kept the door open to a diplomatic resolution, though it has drawn a line at direct talks with the US. Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported that the Iranian delegation in New York has no plans for new direct negotiations with the US side and is waiting for Washington's official response to the proposal it conveyed through Qatar.

The mounting economic toll of a war now in its eighth month is adding urgency to the negotiations on both sides. The US is burdened by high oil prices stemming from attacks on vessels and disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, while Iran is under growing economic pressure from the blockade and tightened oil sanctions.