US-Iran talks in New York: What’s the latest?

What Happened

On the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, Qatari mediators met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday to discuss Tehran's proposal for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran said would occur within seven days. Araghchi told state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting on Tuesday before leaving New York that he expected a formal US response by the end of the day. The proposal, first passed to Washington via Qatari mediators last week, reportedly required the US to lift its naval blockade, waive sanctions, release an estimated $12bn in frozen Iranian assets, and enforce a wider regional ceasefire including Lebanon; broader peace talks, including discussion of Iran's nuclear programme, would begin only after those steps. Araghchi said the proposal includes elements of the Islamabad memorandum of understanding signed by the US and Iran on June 17. President Donald Trump was reported to have rejected the offer, but Araghchi said Tehran had received no formal rejection and that Qatari mediators had ideas to discuss with the American side before conveying a final response. US officials said Washington wants a single comprehensive deal resolving all outstanding issues, especially Tehran's nuclear programme, rather than Iran's step-by-step sequencing. Trump publicly called reports that he had offered sanctions relief in exchange for nuclear concessions a 'hoax' on Truth Social, while an unnamed US official told The Associated Press and Axios cited US officials saying sanctions relief and release of some frozen funds could be offered if nuclear progress was made.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The talks centre on the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of the world's oil and natural gas is shipped in peacetime and which is currently subject to blockades by both sides. Iran's sequencing demand ties reopening the strait to sanctions relief, asset release, and a regional ceasefire including Lebanon, while the US conditions any final deal on resolving Iran's nuclear programme. A breakdown or breakthrough would affect global energy markets, the regional war with Israel and allied groups, and the humanitarian toll of sanctions, which a Lancet Global Health study estimated cause more than 564,250 deaths annually worldwide.

Watch For

A formal US response through Qatari mediators was expected by the end of Tuesday after Araghchi's meeting in New York; monitor whether Qatar relays a clear rejection or counterproposal and whether Araghchi reports receiving it. Watch for any shift in Iran's stated 'no flexibility' position on the Hormuz-first sequencing, further US statements clarifying Trump's stance on sanctions relief and frozen assets, and any movement on implementing the Islamabad memorandum of understanding signed June 17.