Trump Says Iran Talks Underway at UNGA as Tehran Offers Hormuz Reopening Deal
By Shahnoor Saqib | SCN NEWS
UNITED NATIONS — U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the United States and Iran were talking during the United Nations General Assembly and predicted an eventual settlement, hours after using the UN podium to issue a stark warning to Tehran, while Iranian officials separately offered to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within days if Washington eases military pressure and lifts its blockade of Iranian ports.
The developments turned the opening day of the UNGA81 General Debate into a potentially consequential diplomatic moment in the more than six-month U.S.-Iran conflict, with New York emerging as a venue for negotiations even as both sides continued publicly staking out hard positions.
“They have been talking to us, even today,” Trump said after meeting British Prime Minister Andy Burnham on the sidelines of the General Assembly. Trump said the relationship was developing and that he believed a settlement would eventually be reached, while reiterating that Washington would not accept an Iranian nuclear weapon.
His comments marked a notable change in tone from his address to the General Assembly earlier Tuesday. Speaking before world leaders at UN headquarters, Trump defended U.S. military action against Iran and warned Tehran of severe consequences if efforts to reach an agreement failed. The Iranian delegation walked out while Trump was discussing U.S. action against Tehran, according to the Associated Press.
The apparent shift from confrontation at the UN podium to talk of negotiations came as Iran put forward a potentially significant proposal involving one of the world's most important energy corridors.
A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran could reopen the Strait of Hormuz within seven days if the United States reduces military pressure and lifts its blockade on Iranian ports. Iran's delegation attending the General Assembly has full authority to pursue diplomacy with Washington, the official said.
The proposal does not by itself constitute an agreement. Iran wants Washington first to formally signal that it intends to resolve the conflict diplomatically and then agree on a timetable for negotiations, according to the Iranian official. Tehran submitted its proposal for ending hostilities to Washington through mediators on Sept. 16.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in New York on Tuesday but is not currently expected to meet Trump, Reuters reported. That leaves intermediaries and lower-level contacts as the more immediate route for negotiations unless the diplomatic situation changes during high-level week.
The strait normally carries about 20% of the world's daily crude oil and liquefied natural gas supply, making disruption there a problem extending well beyond Washington and Tehran.
Security risks remain acute. Reuters reported that two vessels were recently struck in separate incidents while crossing Hormuz. Two crew members suffered minor injuries after the Isle of Man-flagged crude tanker LR Stephanie was hit by an unidentified projectile, while the Liberia-flagged LPG carrier Al Maryah was also struck. Responsibility for the incidents has not been established.
The possibility of reopening the waterway has consequently become intertwined with negotiations over the wider conflict.
France is simultaneously preparing another diplomatic route through the United Nations. Paris has begun drafting a Security Council resolution, in coordination with Washington, aimed at establishing an international mechanism to restore movement through the Strait of Hormuz, diplomats told Reuters.
French President Emmanuel Macron discussed options with Trump in New York on Monday. The proposed resolution would focus on freedom of navigation and commercial shipping rather than explicitly targeting Iran, an approach designed in part to overcome objections from China and Russia that blocked previous attempts at Security Council action.
The French initiative and Iran's proposal point toward two potentially complementary diplomatic tracks: negotiations with Tehran over reopening Hormuz and a broader UN-backed framework intended to protect navigation through the waterway.
Whether either succeeds remains uncertain.
Trump's public position continues to combine negotiations with pressure. In his General Assembly address, he called on other governments to join the U.S. pressure campaign against Tehran and said Iran would not be permitted to acquire nuclear weapons.
Iran, meanwhile, is demanding tangible changes in U.S. policy before reopening the strait. Its conditions include easing military pressure and lifting the blockade on Iranian ports, issues that could make negotiations substantially more complicated than a narrowly defined maritime agreement.
Regional governments are also attempting to bridge the gap. Arab mediators have been contacting Washington and Tehran about possible high-level talks during UNGA, while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met Qatar's prime minister in New York on Tuesday.
The United Nations has welcomed efforts to restart dialogue. A UN spokesperson said this week that Secretary-General António Guterres appreciated Pakistan's mediation efforts between Iran and the United States, describing Islamabad's role as critical and saying the UN chief had remained in close contact with Pakistani leaders in support of efforts to end the conflict.
That gives Pakistan and other regional mediators potential relevance to whatever diplomatic architecture emerges in New York, although neither Washington nor Tehran has announced a comprehensive agreement.
The most immediate test may instead be Hormuz.
If negotiations produce a reopening of the strait, even without resolving the broader U.S.-Iran conflict, the impact would extend from regional security to global energy markets and commercial shipping. France's parallel Security Council initiative could then provide an international mechanism intended to preserve navigation.
For now, the contrast on the first day of the General Debate remains striking: Trump arrived at the UN warning Iran of potentially devastating consequences, but only hours later publicly confirmed that communication with Tehran was continuing and said he believed a settlement could eventually be reached.
With Iran's delegation empowered to negotiate and Tehran putting a concrete Hormuz proposal on the table, UNGA81 has become more than a platform for competing U.S. and Iranian speeches. It has also become a venue where the first elements of a possible diplomatic off-ramp are being tested.