M-East war: Iran gives US 30 days to end blockade

By Nkiruka Nnorom with agency report

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has set a 30-day deadline for the US military to end its blockade of ports, saying US President, Donald Trump, must choose between an impossible military operation or a bad deal.

The comments came after Tehran sent a 14-point plan to the US calling for guarantees of non-aggression, the lifting of a naval blockade, and an end to the war “on all fronts“, including Lebanon.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, outlined a 14-point plan demanding a permanent end to the war, not a fragile ceasefire or extended pause, as well as the lifting of the United States blockade over the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian ports, along with guarantees and trust-building measures between the US and Iran.

Responding to the new proposal, Trump said he was studying it but wasn’t sure he could make a deal with Iran, a day after he voiced frustration with a previous offer from Tehran through the mediator, Pakistan.

Late on Thursday, Tehran sent the proposal to Pakistan, which got the two sides to agree on the ceasefire. According to the Iranian Tasnim news agency, the 14-point plan was formulated in response to a nine-point US plan.

But weeks after the ceasefire began on April 8, Washington and Tehran have been unable to negotiate a peace deal.

While Tehran wants a permanent end to the war, Trump insisted that Iran first end the effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, and agree to end its uranium enrichment.

Iran’s blockade of the strait came in response to the US and Israel launching attacks on the country on February 28. A naval blockade of Iranian ports by the Trump administration, despite the ceasefire deal, has heightened tensions.

The US and Iran have also been continuing to attack, capture, and intercept each other’s ships, pointing to an ongoing naval war still playing out in the Strait of Hormuz.