The Iran Hormuz offer is still on the table. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Iranian media on Sunday that Tehran’s offer to the United States stands: if Washington accepts Iran’s conditions, the Strait of Hormuz would be open within six days and US-Iran talks would resume on the seventh day, Reuters reported via Dawn’s live coverage.
The statement came as Iran’s parliament installed a new defence minister and Tehran’s leadership traded warnings with Washington over the next round of the conflict that began with US-Israeli strikes in February.
New defence chief threatens ‘enormous damage’
Members of Iran’s Islamic Consultative Assembly gave a vote of confidence to Mehrdad Akhlaghi Ketabchi as defence minister on Sunday, AFP reported. He replaces the previous minister, who was killed on the first day of the war with the United States, nearly eight months after the initial US-Israeli strikes that sparked the conflict.
Shortly after winning the vote, Akhlaghi warned that Washington would suffer if it resumed its military campaign. “People can rest assured that they will most likely not dare to attack us,” he told reporters. “If they (the US) do, they themselves and the region will suffer enormous damage.”
Iran’s security chief Mohsen Rezaei added that Tehran’s armed forces had prepared a response plan “more devastating” than the conflicts between the two countries so far, according to IRIB. “Iran’s armed forces have prepared a PLAN to RESPOND to any new US adventure that is MORE DEVASTATING than the 12-day and 40-day wars,” Rezaei was quoted as saying.
The parliamentary vote took place during a meeting where President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran would not “bow down to the excesses of aggressor countries”.
Iran Hormuz offer follows weeks of tanker incidents
Araghchi’s offer is not new, but his insistence that it remains open matters. Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump called Iran’s Hormuz proposal “not enough”. Since then the waterway has seen repeated incidents, including two commercial ships sinking near the strait after being hit by projectiles in mid-October, with one crew member killed. Feature Pakistan has followed the escalation at sea, from the third tanker strike in the strait to Iran’s clashes with Washington over its tactics.
The rhetoric on the American side has hardened too. US Vice President JD Vance has blamed Iran’s closure of Hormuz and attacks on tankers for high petrol prices, claiming at a CBS town hall that prices would be “three times as high if it weren’t for the US Navy keeping oil and gas moving out of the Strait of Hormuz”. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has told Iran to abandon its “nuclear ambitions” at the table or face devastation.
Pakistan has been trying to keep diplomatic channels open. At an OIC foreign ministers’ meeting in Baghdad on Sunday, Araghchi said Washington had “repeatedly disrupted” diplomatic processes by breaking agreements and resorting to force, while insisting Iran was ready for dialogue based on mutual respect. Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar also raised regional tensions, including the war, in discussions with his Omani counterpart earlier this week.
For Pakistan, the waterway is not a distant concern. A prolonged closure of Hormuz would raise shipping costs and fuel prices worldwide, and Islamabad imports nearly all of its petroleum needs. Any serious disruption in the strait tends to reach Pakistani consumers through the pump and the power bill.
FAQ
What is Iran’s offer on the Strait of Hormuz?
Iran says it will reopen the Strait of Hormuz within six days if the United States accepts its conditions, and US-Iran talks would resume on the seventh day, according to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
Who is Iran’s new defence minister?
Mehrdad Akhlaghi Ketabchi won a parliamentary vote of confidence on October 18, 2026, replacing the previous defence minister who was killed on the first day of the US-Iran war.
What did the new minister say about the US?
Akhlaghi said the US “will most likely not dare to attack” Iran, but warned that if it does, Washington and the region would “suffer enormous damage”.
Why does the Strait of Hormuz matter?
The strait carries a large share of the world’s seaborne oil. Its closure raises global fuel prices and shipping costs, with direct effects on oil-importing countries such as Pakistan.
