WASHINGTON/DUBAI (Reuters) – The U.S. and Iran stuck on Thursday to directly opposing stances over Tehran’s uranium stockpile and controls on the Strait of Hormuz, providing little fodder for hope in Pakistani-led efforts to end the conflict.
President Donald Trump said the U.S. will eventually recover Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium – which Washington believes is destined for a nuclear weapon though Tehran says is intended purely for peaceful purposes.
“We will get it. We don’t need it, we don’t want it. We’ll probably destroy it after we get it, but we’re not going to let them have it,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has, however, issued a directive that the uranium should not be sent abroad, two senior Iranian sources told Reuters before Trump’s comments.
Trump also railed against Tehran’s intentions to charge fees for use of the Strait of Hormuz off its coast, where a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas passed through before the war.
“We want it open, we want it free. We don’t want tolls,” he said. “It’s an international waterway.”
Six weeks since a fragile ceasefire took effect, talks to end the war have made little progress though a main mediator, Pakistan’s Army Chief Asim Munir, was possibly heading to Tehran for more talks on Thursday, three sources told Reuters.
“We’re speaking to all the various groups in Iran to streamline communication and so things pick up pace,” said one of the sources familiar with negotiations.
“Trump’s patience running thin is a concern, but we’re working on the pace at which messages are relayed from each side.”
The impasse is wreaking havoc on the global economy, chiefly due to the inflationary impact of soaring oil prices.
Trump faces domestic pressure ahead of November’s midterm elections, with his approval rating near its lowest since he returned to the White House, with fuel price hikes a big factor in that.
Oil prices were higher on Thursday: U.S. crude rose 3.22% to $101.42 a barrel and Brent rose to $107.71 per barrel, up 2.54% on the day.
Trump has said he is ready to resume strikes on Iran, which the U.S. and ally Israel first launched in late February, if he does not get the “right answers” from Iran’s leadership.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have warned that that will trigger retaliation beyond its region.
Tehran submitted its latest offer to the U.S. this week.
Tehran’s descriptions suggest it largely repeats terms Trump previously rejected, including demands for control of the Strait of Hormuz, compensation for war damage, lifting of sanctions, release of frozen assets and the withdrawal of U.S. troops.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister on Thursday restated Tehran’s claims to sovereignty over the strait, saying aggression from the U.S., Israel and some regional states had fundamentally altered security in the waterway.
In a legal commentary, Kazem Gharibabadi said Iran could adopt “practical and proportionate measures” to protect its security and maritime safety, citing international law.
The International Energy Agency says the conflict has produced the world’s worst energy shock.
It warned on Thursday that the peak of summer fuel demand coupled with a lack of new Middle East supply means the market could enter the “red zone” in July and August.
Some ships are managing to transit the strait, but only a trickle compared with the 125-140 daily passages before the war.
Iran’s IRNA news agency said 31 ships had passed in the last 24 hours in coordination with the Iranian navy.
Iran said it aimed to reopen the strait to friendly countries that abide by its terms that could potentially include fees.
“It would make a diplomatic deal unfeasible if they were to continue to pursue that. So it’s a threat to the world if they were trying to do that, and it’s completely illegal,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.
Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said their war aims were to curb Iran’s support for regional militias, dismantle its nuclear programme, destroy its missile capabilities and make it easier for Iranians to topple their rulers.
But Iran has so far retained its stockpile of near-weapons-grade enriched uranium, and its ability to threaten neighbours with missiles, drones and proxy militias.
