Iran says in 'intensive' negotiations with US to avert war

Iran said intensive indirect negotiations with Washington were underway on Monday as Tehran offered to reopen the Strait of Hormuz if the United States met its demands. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Qatar and Pakistan were actively mediating, while China urged a peaceful resolution and Iran’s security chief spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Iran said the strait could reopen within two days if its conditions were accepted.

Iran’s September proposal called for a seven-day plan to reopen the strait if the United States ended the war on all fronts, unfroze Iranian assets, lifted oil sanctions and ended its counter-blockade of Iranian ports.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said Iran could restore security in the strait and resume negotiations within a short period if its demands were met.

Araghchi said Washington must accept a new transit route agreed between Iran and Oman, remove recent sanctions and reduce U.S. troop numbers in the region.

Iranian First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref described messages from the United States as an acknowledgement of Iran’s victory, while President Donald Trump threatened a forceful response at a campaign rally.

China’s President Xi Jinping discussed the war with Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq in Beijing, and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met Iranian and Saudi officials there on Monday.

Published Nov 3, 2026 1:35 am KST

Iranian motorists drive past a poster of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei in central Tehran on Sunday. AFP-Yonhap

TEHRAN — Iran on Monday said "intensive" exchanges were underway with Washington and offered to reopen the Strait of Hormuz under strict conditions, as efforts escalated to avert a return to war.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said indirect talks were taking place via mediators. China also urged a return to negotiations, while Iran's security chief discussed the conflict with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Oil prices, sent rocketing by Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz energy corridor, dropped more than six percent on Monday on optimism over the eight-month-old conflict.

"Given the sensitivity and gravity of the current situation, consultations and deliberations are very intensive," Araghchi said in a video interview with the official IRNA news agency.

"Qatar and Pakistan are playing a very active mediating role in these negotiations." The Axios news outlet reported that U.S. Vice President JD Vance had sent a letter to Iranian national security chief Mohsen Rezaei about possible new talks, marking the highest-level move in months.

The redoubled diplomatic push comes ahead of Tuesday's U.S. midterm elections, where dissatisfaction over the war and higher fuel prices are weighing on U.S. President Donald Trump's Republicans.

Democrats expect to win at least partial control of Congress and impose political constraints on Trump for the first time in two years.

Iran's First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref said the messages received from the U.S. were "an acknowledgement of our victory".

But Trump kept up his threats against Iran, telling a campaign rally that at "some point we're going to have to give them the hammer".

'Good-faith approach'

A senior Iranian official said Tehran was ready to open Hormuz, the export highway for the energy-rich Gulf, within two days — as long as Washington agrees to its list of demands.

In September, Iran proposed a seven-day plan to reopen the strait if the U.S. agreed to demands including ending the war on all fronts, unfreezing Iranian assets, lifting oil sanctions and ending its counter-blockade of Iranian ports.

"The possibility of implementing this plan in two days is another indication of Iran's good-faith approach," foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told reporters at a briefing.

"We have stated that, if Iran's demands are met, it would be possible to restore security to the Strait of Hormuz and resume the negotiating process within a short period."

Baqaei said "everything depends" on the U.S. side accepting the Iranian demands. "Only then can we discuss the subsequent stages," he added.

Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed the war with Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq in Beijing on Monday — the first visit to China by the Gulf nation's head of state since diplomatic ties were established.

"The two sides called for resolving disputes through political and diplomatic means, urging the United States and Iran to pursue a peaceful path, achieve a ceasefire (and) prevent war entirely," an Omani statement said.

China also held meetings with Iranian and Saudi officials in Beijing on Monday.

Beijing supports Tehran in "safeguarding its own sovereignty and security", Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Ali Bagheri, deputy secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, according to a Chinese statement.

Bagheri told Wang that "Tehran's stance on defending its national security, sovereignty, and territorial integrity remains unchanged, and that Iran will make no compromises in this regard", according to state TV.

Russian President Putin also spoke with Iran's security chief Mohsen Rezaei about the war by telephone, Iranian state media said.

In an interview with Al Jazeera released on Sunday, Araghchi said Washington must accept a new route agreed between Iran and Oman for transiting the strait.

He said the U.S. must also remove sanctions imposed in recent months and reduce American troop numbers in the region.

Washington has since August rolled out a fresh raft of sanctions, part of what it called "economic asphyxiation" of Iran.

American and Israeli threats to Iran rose in the run-up to the midterms and last week's elections in Israel, where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu failed to secure a majority.

On Saturday, Trump said he still had to "take care" of one or two targets including Pickaxe mountain in central Iran, a suspected nuclear site which Tehran denies is such a facility.

"Any act of aggression against Iran, any military attack against Iran, by whatever means, will be met with a powerful, immediate and comprehensive response from us," Baqaei said.

伊朗周一表示，正与华盛顿进行密集的间接谈判。德黑兰方面提出，如果美国满足其要求，伊朗愿意重新开放霍尔木兹海峡。伊朗外长阿巴斯·阿拉格奇称，卡塔尔和巴基斯坦正在积极斡旋，中国则敦促各方和平解决争端。伊朗安全部长也与俄罗斯总统普京通了电话。伊朗表示，如果美国接受其条件，霍尔木兹海峡可在两天内重新开放。

伊朗在9月份提出的方案是，如果美国结束所有战线的战争、解冻伊朗资产、解除石油制裁并结束对伊朗港口的反封锁，伊朗将在七天内重新开放海峡。

伊朗外交部发言人伊斯梅尔·巴盖伊表示，如果伊朗的要求得到满足，伊朗可以在短时间内恢复海峡安全并恢复谈判。

阿拉格奇表示，华盛顿必须接受伊朗和阿曼之间达成的新过境路线协议，取消最近的制裁，并减少该地区的美军人数。

伊朗第一副总统穆罕默德·礼萨·阿里夫称，美国发来的信息是对伊朗胜利的承认，而美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在竞选集会上威胁要做出强有力的回应。

中国国家主席习近平在北京与阿曼苏丹海赛姆·本·塔里克讨论了战争问题，中国外交部长王毅周一在阿曼会见了伊朗和沙特阿拉伯官员。

发布于2026年11月3日凌晨1点35分（韩国标准时间）

周日，伊朗驾车者驶过德黑兰市中心伊朗最高领袖阿亚图拉·穆杰塔巴·哈梅内伊的海报。法新社-韩联社

德黑兰——伊朗周一表示，正与华盛顿进行“密集”交流，并提出在严格条件下重新开放霍尔木兹海峡，各方努力升级以避免战争重燃。

伊朗外交部长阿巴斯·阿拉格奇表示，双方正通过调解人进行间接会谈。中国也敦促各方重返谈判桌，与此同时，伊朗安全部门负责人与俄罗斯总统普京就冲突问题进行了磋商。

受伊朗封锁霍尔木兹海峡能源走廊的影响，油价飙升；但周一，随着人们对这场持续八个月的冲突感到乐观，油价下跌超过 6%。

“鉴于当前局势的敏感性和严重性，磋商和审议非常密集，”阿拉格奇在接受伊朗官方通讯社伊通社的视频采访时表示。

“卡塔尔和巴基斯坦在这些谈判中发挥着非常积极的调解作用。” Axios新闻网报道称，美国副总统万斯已致信伊朗国家安全顾问穆赫辛·雷扎伊，讨论可能重启谈判的问题，这是数月来最高级别的举措。

在周二美国中期选举前夕，双方加大了外交努力，民众对战争和不断上涨的燃油价格感到不满，这给美国总统唐纳德·特朗普的共和党人带来了压力。

民主党人预计至少能部分控制国会，并在两年内首次对特朗普施加政治约束。

伊朗第一副总统穆罕默德·礼萨·阿里夫表示，收到的来自美国的信息是“对我们胜利的认可”。

但特朗普继续对伊朗发出威胁，他在一次竞选集会上表示，“在某个时候，我们不得不给他们沉重一击”。

“善意做法”

一位伊朗高级官员表示，只要华盛顿同意伊朗提出的要求，德黑兰准备在两天内开放霍尔木兹海峡——通往能源丰富的海湾地区的出口通道。

9 月，伊朗提出了一项为期七天的计划，如果美国同意其要求，包括结束所有战线的战争、解冻伊朗资产、解除石油制裁以及结束对伊朗港口的反封锁，伊朗将重新开放海峡。

伊朗外交部发言人伊斯梅尔·巴盖伊在新闻发布会上告诉记者：“两天内实施该计划的可能性再次表明了伊朗的诚意。”

“我们已经声明，如果伊朗的要求得到满足，就有可能在短时间内恢复霍尔木兹海峡的安全，并重启谈判进程。”

巴盖伊表示，“一切都取决于”美方是否接受伊朗的要求。“只有这样，我们才能讨论后续阶段的问题，”他补充道。

周一，中国国家主席习近平在北京与阿曼苏丹海赛姆·本·塔里克讨论了这场战争——这是自两国建交以来，这个海湾国家的国家元首首次访问中国。

阿曼方面发表声明称：“双方呼吁通过政治和外交手段解决争端，敦促美国和伊朗走和平道路，实现停火，彻底防止战争。”

周一，中国还在北京与伊朗和沙特阿拉伯官员举行了会晤。

据中国方面发表的声明，外交部长王毅告诉伊朗最高国家安全委员会副秘书长阿里·巴盖里，北京支持德黑兰“维护自身主权和安全”。

据伊朗国家电视台报道，巴盖里告诉王毅，“德黑兰在捍卫国家安全、主权和领土完整的立场没有改变，伊朗在这方面不会做出任何妥协”。

据伊朗国家媒体报道，俄罗斯总统普京还与伊朗安全局局长穆赫辛·雷扎伊通了电话，讨论了战争问题。

阿拉格奇在周日发布的半岛电视台采访中表示，华盛顿必须接受伊朗和阿曼之间达成的穿越海峡的新路线。

他表示，美国还必须取消近几个月来实施的制裁，并减少在该地区的美国军队人数。

自 8 月以来，华盛顿推出了一系列新的制裁措施，这是其所谓的对伊朗“经济窒息”的一部分。

在以色列中期选举和上周的以色列大选期间，美国和以色列对伊朗的威胁不断升级，而以色列总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡在大选中未能获得多数席位。

周六，特朗普表示，他仍然需要“处理”一两个目标，其中包括伊朗中部的皮卡兹山，那里被怀疑是核设施，但德黑兰否认是核设施。

巴盖伊说：“任何针对伊朗的侵略行为，任何针对伊朗的军事攻击，无论采用何种手段，都将遭到我们强有力的、立即的和全面的回应。”