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September 26, 2026

Tehran 5:07 pm

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A tugboat guides a ship at the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in Sharjah Emirate, along the Gulf of Oman on July 14, 2026.

Analysis

Could Iran's 7-day Hormuz proposal culminate in diplomatic deal?

Iran's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz in seven days brings into focus the central challenge facing diplomacy with Washington: how to turn military leverage into a negotiated path without giving up too much in return.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

An Iran Air Airbus A300 prepares for boarding at Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran, Iran, Aug. 16, 2016.

‘Free for all or for no one’: Iran warns neighbors over flight bans

Several countries in the region have suspended Iranian flights under US sanctions after Washington warned global companies they would no longer have access to the dollar system if they do business with Iranian airlines.

Hector RETAMAL / AFP via Getty Images

Iran flights continue, UAE route closes on day 2 of US sanctions

All flights by Iranian carriers to the UAE have been canceled, according to Iran's ISNA news agency.

AFP via Getty Images

Iran threatens to expand war to Indian Ocean: What to know

An adviser to Iran's supreme leader has threatened to open a new front in the Indian Ocean if the US resumes its strikes against Iran.

Latest News

Fresh clashes leave 6 dead in Iran's Sistan and Baluchistan: What to know

Iranian security forces stand guard in the capital city on July 03, 2026 in Tehran, Iran.

Rubio: US-Iran talks 'positive,' no breakthrough yet

Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images

Cargo vessel attack in Hormuz kills 1 as world leaders gather at UN

The Marshall Islands-flagged bulk carrier vessel Manta Ursula is pictured moored in Muscat on July 25, 2026.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Benjamin Houghton

In Durham, reporting on China in the Middle East

Rahim Rahimov

In Baku, reporting on Middle East-Caucasus ties

Mehrnaz Samimi

In Washington, DC, reporting on Iranian culture

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (2nd R) meets with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (2nd L) at a hotel in Vienna, Austria June 27, 2015. Senior U.S. and Iranian officials said much hard work still needs to be done to bridge significant differences on an agreement to curb Iran's nuclear programme. REUTERS/Carlos Barria - RTX1I13O

Zarif travels to Iran after nuclear talks with Kerry

Iran Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif departed nuclear talks with US Secretary of State John Kerry and P5+1 diplomats in Vienna June 28 for consultations in Tehran, as officials say they will need a few days past the June 30 deadline to try to conclude the nuclear deal.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (2nd R) meets with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (2nd L) at a hotel in Vienna, Austria June 27, 2015. Senior U.S. and Iranian officials said much hard work still needs to be done to bridge significant differences on an agreement to curb Iran's nuclear programme. REUTERS/Carlos Barria - RTX1I13O

Did Khamenei blur his own red lines on sanctions?

Supreme Leader Khamenei gives strong backing for Iran’s negotiating team heading into Vienna talks; Assad holds off on hitting Islamic State, for now; Israel forced to clarify position on Jabhat al-Nusra; Egypt seeks to counter Turkey’s role in Syria.

Did Khamenei demand immediate sanctions relief?

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s acknowledgement of the time necessary for the West to uphold its commitments gains great importance when put into the context of what he defines as “signing of the agreement.”

Shi'ite fighters from Hashid Shaabi forces walk with their weapons at the front line at the Shi'ite Turkman village of Bashir, 20km south of Kirkuk, March 14, 2015. Kurdish peshmerga forces, backed by Shi'ite militia fighters, have been attacking Islamic State-held towns and villages south and west of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, peshmerga sources said. REUTERS/Ako Rasheed (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR4TCDN

Leaked cables show Gulf leery of Shiite expansion

The Gulf states are concerned about the growing influence of Shiites in neighboring countries, expressing their fears of the relations established between the Shiites of Iran and Iraq and their own Shiite communities.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry holds a briefing on the "2014 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices" at the State Department in Washington June 25, 2015. Kerry will fly to Vienna on Friday to take part in Iran nuclear talks ahead of a self-imposed June 30 deadline, U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said in a statement. REUTERS/Gary Cameron - RTR4YYCY

US 'hopeful' on final Iran deal

The United States sees a path to reaching a “very good” Iran nuclear deal, but tough decisions will have to be made, according to a senior US official, as John Kerry and Mohammad Javad Zarif were set to join the talks in Vienna.

A woman prepares tea at a booth representing Iran at the 49th International Tourism Fair (ITB Berlin 2015) in Berlin on March 4, 2015. 10 096 exhibitors from 186 countries attend the fair that runs until March 8, 2015 in the German capital. AFP PHOTO / TOBIAS SCHWARZ (Photo credit should read TOBIAS SCHWARZ/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran's tea tradition

Though tea came late to Iran, it has become ubiquitous in daily life in the country.

An Iranian man holds a photo of late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, while listening to Iran's President Hassan Rouhani delivering a speech on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the death of Islamic revolutionary leader Khomeini, at Khomeini's mausoleum in a suburb of Tehran on June 3, 2014. AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Interior Ministry: Rouhani hecklers 'rogue' elements

Interior Ministry officials said that recent hecklers at a Rouhani event were rogue elements, drawing criticism that authorities are unable or unwilling to prosecute the culprits.

A helicopter from the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) hovers over an Iranian patrol ship during a transit through the Strait of Hormuz, February 14, 2012. REUTERS/Jumana El Heloueh (GULF - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) - RTR2XU5R

How security in Strait of Hormuz brings US, Iran closer

Gulf and international security are closely linked to the security of the Strait of Hormuz, which is currently facing many challenges that require a joint action between all affected countries.

Yemen's Foreign Minister Reyad Yassin Abdulla speaks to the media during a news conference by the Mission of Yemen in Geneva, Switzerland, June 17, 2015. REUTERS/Pierre Albouy - RTX1GWX6

Progress on Yemen slow but not dead

The Geneva talks ended without results, but many hold that the real achievement was getting the sides to talk for the first time in months, perhaps allowing the international community to intensify mediation efforts.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on leaving the office to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.

An anti-U.S. mural is seen on a wall of a government building in central Tehran October 12, 2011. U.S. authorities said on Tuesday that they had broken up a plot by two men linked to Iran's security agencies to kill the Saudi envoy, Adel al-Jubeir. One man was arrested last month while the other was believed to be in Iran. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN - Tag

Why doesn't Iran trust the US?

A fundamental lack of trust between Iran and the world powers, and mainly the United States, continues to stand in the way of a comprehensive nuclear deal.

Iran's chief negotiator Saeed Jalili attends a news conference after the talks on Iran's nuclear programme in Almaty, April 6, 2013. World powers and Iran remained far apart after ending two days of intensive talks on Tehran's nuclear programme on Saturday, the European Union's foreign policy chief said, prolonging a stand-off that risks spiralling into a new Middle East war. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov (KAZAKHSTAN - Tags: POLITICS ENERGY) - RTXYAOV

Will nuclear talks prevent Jalili's return to politics?

A successful conclusion to the negotiations on Iran's nuclear program could doom the effort by hard-line former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jaili to return to politics as a member of parliament.

REMOVING PRESS FROM CAPTION: Iranian interior minister Mostafa Pour-Mohammadi attends a conference for interior ministers of countries neighbouring Iraq in Kuwait City 23 October 2007. Turkey reassured Iraq today that it wants a diplomatic solution to the problem of Kurdish rebel rear-bases but rejected a conditional ceasefire offer made by the guerrillas. AFP PHOTO/YASSER AL-ZAYYAT (Photo credit should read YASSER AL-ZAYYAT/AFP/Getty Images)

Iranian justice minister explains delay in corruption case

Mostafa Pourmohammadi, Iran's justice minister, explained why the high-profile corruption case of Babak Zanjani has yet to reach a conclusion.