Iran says its seven-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz is still on the table

Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, told Iranian media on Sunday that Tehran's offer to reopen the Strait of Hormuz remains on the table, and he urged Washington to accept it. Iran presented the plan in mid-September, after an interim ceasefire collapsed. Under it, Iran would reopen the strait on day six and resume formal negotiations on day seven. In return, the United States would lift its naval blockade, remove oil sanctions and end hostilities on all fronts, including Lebanon. Iran's security chief said last week that talks had stalled because Washington had not addressed all seven Iranian conditions.

The Israeli business daily Globes argues that the economy at home will decide Tehran's next step. Rising oil prices and fear of escalation in the Gulf, it wrote, obscure an Iranian economy near collapse, with inflation of almost 90% and concern about energy and food shortages this winter. The experts it quoted expect the leadership to prefer quiet maneuvering while it waits for the results of elections in Israel and the United States. Earlier data are consistent with that picture of strain. The rial has lost more than half its value in a year, and food inflation exceeded 115% in the spring.

Araghchi also attacked Israel's prime minister. Globes reported him saying that "Netanyahu is dragging America into another war to stay out of prison". Separately, an Austrian Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Vienna made an emergency landing in Sofia after a bomb threat, escorted by a Bulgarian MiG-29. Israeli officials suspect the threat was a deliberate false alarm.

Each side's public statements serve its own position. Tehran's offer places the burden of the closure on Washington ahead of the US midterms. Israeli coverage that stresses Iran's economic weakness supports the view that pressure is working. Both may be partly right: a country with inflation near 90% has reason to settle, and a blockade that keeps Brent above $100 gives Washington a domestic reason to settle too.