4 min readNew DelhiMay 3, 2026 05:44 PM IST
US President Donald Trump on Sunday said that Iran “has not paid a big enough price” after receiving Tehran’s new peace proposal, signalling his desire to prolong the conflict and dampening prospects of the 14-point plan, forwarded by Pakistan, getting the nod.
After telling reporters he has yet to receive the “exact wording” of Iran’s peace plan, Trump wrote on social media, saying he “can’t imagine that it would be acceptable in that they have not yet paid a big enough price for what they have done to Humanity, and the World, over the last 47 years.”
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, told diplomats in Tehran that “the ball is in the United States’ court to choose the path of diplomacy or the continuation of a confrontational approach,” The Guardian reported.
‘Confrontational approach’
The US President on Saturday expressed his willingness to prolong the conflict, saying that Washington will not end the war “early” until its objectives in Iran are met. Amid the fragile ceasefire, Trump also signalled the possibility of fresh strikes if Iran “misbehaves.”
Around the same time, Iran also hinted that it intends to tighten its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, saying that it would enforce “new rules” and make the waters sources of “security and prosperity for the region”.
The announcement came after the US rejected an earlier peace proposal from Tehran involving the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) lifting its blockade on Hormuz in exchange for the US lifting naval restrictions on Iranian ports. Tehran had offered to continue the negotiations on its nuclear programme at a later stage, but Washington refused.
Continuing the blockade
Trump has extended the Pakistan-brokered ceasefire indefinitely. The US has maintained the naval blockade aimed to build pressure on Tehran, which has been hesitant to make concessions on its nuclear programme – the key sticking point.
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The US President told Axios on Thursday that the blockade was “somewhat more effective than the bombing,” as crude exports from the Strait are the lifeline for Iran’s cash-strapped economy. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reaffirmed that the restriction will stay in place till freedom of navigation in the crucial waterway is restored to “pre-February 27” levels. The Iran conflict began when US and Israeli coordinated strikes hit Iran on February 28. Tehran retaliated by hitting back at Gulf states and Israel and shutting the Strait of Hormuz.
The Republican administration also skirted the May 1 legal deadline to secure Congressional approval to continue the operation, with the US President arguing that hostilities were “terminated” in an apparent bid to dodge the War Powers Resolution.
The nuclear issue
The nuclear issue has become the flashpoint for disputes between the Iranian leadership, with senior leaders divided over the path forward.
The so-called hardliners (the Paydari) in Parliament are adamant about Iran’s right to enrich uranium, while moderates are pushing for making concessions in exchange for sanctions relief.
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Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Ghalibaf was reportedly removed from Tehran’s negotiating team by the IRGC over allegations that he expanded the talks to include the nuclear issue, reported Iran International, a London-based Persian language news channel, quoting unnamed sources.
Last week, President Masoud Pezeshkian and Ghalibaf reportedly deliberated the removal of Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, whom they view as aligned with IRGC chief Ahmad Vahidi’s stance on nuclear talks with the US, Iran International said quoting unnamed sources.
According to reports, Iran currently has over 400 kilograms of near-weapons-grade uranium.
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