US Awaits Ceasefire Response As Iran Tests Peace With Drone Strikes

The US is awaiting a response from Iran to its proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as tensions remain high in the region after Iran launched a wave of drone attacks on Sunday.

Tensions flared in the Gulf over the weekend after Tehran launched a wave of drone attacks across the region, The Sun reported.

The development comes after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps threatened to target US sites in the Middle East and enemy ships. At least 31 people were reportedly killed Friday in Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon, according to Lebanon’s official National News Agency. Tehran is yet to offer any indication on its willingness for a deal with Washington, according to a Bloomberg report.

On Saturday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff met with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani in Miami, Axios reported. Details were not disclosed, but many reports indicated the talks mainly revolved around aspects of a potential Iran deal .

The US demands include curbs on Tehran’s nuclear program and a moratorium on uranian enrichment by the Islamic Republic. Iran denies any plans to develop a nuclear weapon and has said its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, a claim disputed by the US.

Doubts on a potential deal with Iran to ensure peaceful shipping transit through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical choke point controlled by Tehran, has resulted in a surge in oil prices across the globe.

A fifth of the world’s oil and Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) flowed through the Strait of Hormuz before the US-Israel war in erupted in February.

While reopening the Strait is a stated objective of US President Donald Trump, Iran has sought to control transit of vessels through the passage.

The US is carrying out a blockade of ships transiting to and from Iranian ports through the Strait.

In fresh efforts to end the blockade, Washington conveyed a single-page memo to Iran, that would effectively lift the US blockade, Bloomberg reported.

The US proposal was aimed to set the stage for a month of talks in a bid to enter into a final pact to usher in a closure to the conflict, which has prolonged to more than 10 weeks.

The US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, reportedly said on Saturday that Washington is expecting Tehran’s response.

Iran has charged the US of breaching the shaky ceasefire announced last month.

Rubio has said the US does not intend to allow Iran to “normalize” its grip on the Strait of Hormuz. Washington has repeatedly justified its own naval blockade, saying it is aimed to restore freedom of navigation and put pressure on the Islamic Republic to cut a deal.

Iran has accused the US of violating the April ceasefire by targeting commercial shipping.

The US forces fired on two Iranian-flagged tankers that attempted to violate the American blockade of Tehran’s ports, the US military said on Friday.

Despite the flare-ups in the regions, mediation efforts continued with Pakistan conveying the brief US proposal to Iran, which Washington insists should be the basis for talks to bring an end to the conflict.

On Thursday, Tehran’s state-owned Mizan news agency reported that Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian recently met with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei. The meeting reportedly lasted for more than two hours, though specifics on what transpired are not known.

On Friday, the US announced sanctions against individuals and companies it said were aiding Iran in the war, including in China and Hong Kong. The sanctions have come just days before Trump is set to arrive in Beijing for a summit with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

Washington’s Gulf allies Saudi Arabia and Kuwait has reportedly lifted curbs on US military access to their military bases and airspace. The restrictions had forced the Trump administration to freeze the US’ Project Freedom military escort operation in Hormuz.