Iran calls US response to Hormuz proposal insufficient

TEHRAN

Iran said on Oct. 11 that Washington’s response to its proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was insufficient, as the Revolutionary Guards reported that a supertanker had struck a mine in the waterway.

“The U.S. has agreed to some of Iran’s seven conditions, but we consider its response inadequate,” Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, wrote on X.

Rezaei said Washington needed to clarify its position on unresolved points before the process could move forward.

The White House did not immediately comment.

Iran presented the proposal during the U.N. General Assembly last month, with the United States responding through Qatari intermediaries.

Separately, the Revolutionary Guards’ navy said a supertanker capable of carrying about 2 million barrels of oil struck a mine while attempting to cross the strait with its navigation systems switched off.

The incident caused an explosion in the engine room, it said.

The navy did not identify the vessel or its flag.

It repeated its warning that ships switching off their navigation and identification systems would be treated as hostile.

Rezaei rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s assertion that the strait was open, saying Iran would retain control over passage through the waterway.

He also accused U.S. Central Command chief Adm. Brad Cooper of directing oil-smuggling operations with the United Arab Emirates military, using small boats to transfer oil to larger tankers.

Neither Washington nor Abu Dhabi immediately commented on the allegation.

Rezaei warned that Iran could target U.S.-linked communications cables, data centers and artificial intelligence facilities across the region if American attacks resumed.

He said Tehran was prepared to deploy additional military capabilities in any renewed fighting.

The United States and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding on navigation through Hormuz in June, but the arrangement broke down amid renewed fighting and disputes over security in the strait.