Iran's chief negotiator says the next move belongs to Washington. In an interview with Al Jazeera on Thursday, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Tehran has set out the terms under which it will sign a ceasefire and let commercial traffic move through the Strait of Hormuz again, and that US officials have not answered them. "The ball is now in the American court," he said.
What Tehran wants
The list runs to seven conditions. Iran wants the US naval blockade on its ports lifted, sanctions removed, frozen Iranian funds released, hostilities ended on all fronts and the war formally declared over before negotiators sit down again. On Thursday Iranian officials added another demand: compensation for environmental damage caused by US and Israeli strikes during the conflict. Ghalibaf said Tehran would decide the format and agenda of any talks only after the conditions are fulfilled and accepted.
Washington's response
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has described the conditions as "outrageous and ridiculous". President Donald Trump said this week that the United States does not need a deal with Iran, and he has moved Vice President JD Vance away from the Iran file, asking him to give his full attention to domestic work. Vance had been leading the effort to secure a ceasefire and restart nuclear negotiations. Iran had earlier offered to restart talks within two days if its terms were met, a proposal US officials rejected.
A virtual ceasefire
Almost nine months after the war began, large-scale fighting is on hold. Ian Kelly, a former US ambassador now at Northwestern University, calls the current situation a "virtual ceasefire" — a meaningful de-escalation with the central disputes unresolved. The Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries a fifth of the world's oil, remains closed to most commercial shipping, and tanker traffic is still far below normal, so freight and energy costs stay elevated.
Two other issues block a settlement. The head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council says Tehran will not allow "even a single particle" of enriched uranium to leave the country, while Washington wants Iran to give up its stockpile. And Israeli media report that Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu argued sharply over whether to restart strikes, with Netanyahu pressing for military action. For now the guns are quiet, but no one has signed anything.