Iranian official says "they are reviewing Trump's proposal" as the president makes new threats

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, said Wednesday that his government was reviewing an American plan to end the war, hours after President Trump put pressure on Iran to agree to a deal to end the war and renewed threats, fueling uncertainty around the negotiations.

Mr. Baghaei said that Iran had yet to respond to that proposal. “After finalizing its considerations, Iran will convey its views to the Pakistani side,” he said in an interview with the semiofficial news agency ISNA. Earlier in the day, another Iranian official had dismissed a reported proposal to end the war as a “list of American wishes.”

The mixed messages came a day after Mr. Trump abruptly paused a U.S. military operation to escort commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz, citing what he said was “great progress” in talks. In public, there has been little sign that the weeks of diplomacy aimed at reaching a deal to reopen the vital waterway and end the war were bearing fruit.

In a Truth Social post on Wednesday, Mr. Trump said he would end the war and offer safe passage for vessels through the strait if Iran “agrees to give what has been agreed,” without elaborating. “If they don’t agree, the bombing starts,” he threatened, warning that further U.S. attacks would be “at a much higher level and intensity.”

The suggestion appeared to contradict the assertion made by Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday that the war was “over.”

Here’s what else we’re covering:

• Pakistan: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan welcomed Mr. Trump’s decision to pause the U.S. Navy’s effort to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz. Read more ›

• Economy: Oil prices fell and stocks rose as investors seized on signs that the turmoil in the Persian Gulf may be easing, despite the conflicting signals about the prospects of a peace deal. Read more ›

• China: Iran’s foreign minister on Wednesday met with his Chinese counterpart. Beijing called for greater efforts to open the Strait of Hormuz and for an end to the war, after the Trump administration pressed China to help end Tehran’s chokehold over the waterway.

Via New York Times