President Donald Trump has met with his national security team to discuss a proposal from Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the Middle East conflict.
The White House confirmed that no decision had yet been made, but multiple US media reports suggested Trump was unhappy with the proposal to decouple of the conflict from Iran‘s nuclear programme and leave that issue to be discussed at a later date.
“The president’s red lines with respect to Iran have been made very clear, not just to the American public, but to them as well,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
Germany’s chancellor Friedrich Merz said the Iranian regime appeared to have the upper hand in the peace talks process, which has stalled after a summit hosted by Pakistan broke down.
“An entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership, especially by these so-called Revolutionary Guards. And so I hope that this ends as quickly as possible,” he said.
BP saw its profits saw in the first quarter of 2026, amid a surge in oil and gas prices driven by the war in the Middle East.
The British energy giant on Tuesday posted underlying replacement cost profit, a proxy for net profit, of $3.2bn for the first three months of the year, well ahead of the $2.63bn forecast by analysts.
That’s up from $1.54bn in Q4 of 2025 and more than double the $1.38bn reported for Q1 this time last year.
“Overall, our business continues to run well. This was another quarter of strong operational and financial delivery, and we made further progress towards our 2027 targets,” BP CEO Meg O’Neill said in a statement.
Looking ahead, BP expects a drop in fossil fuel production in the current quarter, in part due to the war.
BP profits soar as Middle East forces up energy prices
BP saw its profits saw in the first quarter of 2026, amid a surge in oil and gas prices driven by the war in the Middle East.
The British energy giant on Tuesday posted underlying replacement cost profit, a proxy for net profit, of $3.2bn for the first three months of the year, well ahead of the $2.63bn forecast by analysts.
That’s up from $1.54bn in Q4 of 2025 and more than double the $1.38bn reported this time last year.
“Overall, our business continues to run well. This was another quarter of strong operational and financial delivery, and we made further progress towards our 2027 targets,” BP CEO Meg O’Neill said in a statement.
Looking ahead, BP expects a drop in fossil fuel production in the current quarter, in part due to the war.
Iran war is latest blow to Somalia’s malnourished children
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has constrained global supplies of energy and fertiliser, with knock-on effects felt worldwide.
Few places have felt that blow stronger than Somalia, where almost half a million children under five are suffering from ‘severe acute malnutrition’ or ‘wasting’, the most life-threatening form of hunger.
The country had already been suffering twin catastrophes of looming famine and radical cuts to foreign aid when the conflict to its east erupted at the end of February.
Health workers in Baidoa and Mogadishu say they have had to stretch out meagre stocks of specialised milk and nutrient-dense peanut-based paste vital to saving these children.
“Since the needs are large and we don’t have a lot of supplies, we have had to keep reducing the amount we give children,” nurse Hassan Yahye Kheyre said.
Russian superyacht sailed through Strait of Hormuz despite blockade
A Russian superyacht, Nord, linked to sanctioned billionaire Alexey Mordashov, “sailed through the Strait of Hormuz” despite the ongoing blockade of the key shipping route, according to the BBC.
The 142m vessel, worth “over $500m (£370m)”, travelled from Dubai to Muscat over the weekend and is “one of a few private vessels to transit through the strait in recent months”.
Iran is simultaneously engaged in talks with Russia amid tensions with the US over the waterway.
In Moscow, Putin hosted an Iranian delegation, where Araghchi praised the “strategic relationship”, while Putin said the Iranian people were “courageously fighting” for sovereignty.
Mordashov, a close associate of Putin, is not officially recorded as the yacht’s owner. However, registry details show that in 2022, Nord was registered under a company owned by his wife.
Putin receives message from Iranian Supreme Leader
Russian president Vladimir Putin met Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi in St Petersburg after receiving a message from Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyed Mojtaba Khamenei.
“We sincerely hope that, drawing on this courage and desire for independence, the Iranian people will, under the leadership of a new Leader, navigate this difficult period of trials – and peace will come,” he said, according to Iran’s Tasnim News agency.
Putin said Russia will support Iran and do what serves the interests of Iran and regional peace.
US treasury chief says businesses working with Iranian airlines risk sanctions
The US treasury secretary Scott Bessent has warned that businesses dealing with Iranian airlines could face US sanctions, as part of Washington’s ongoing effort to increase economic pressure on Tehran.
“Doing business with sanctioned Iranian airlines risks exposure to US sanctions,” Bessent said in a post on X.
“Foreign governments should take all actions necessary to ensure that companies in their jurisdictions do not provide services to those aircraft, including the provision of jet fuel, catering, landing fees or maintenance,” he said.
Oil prices edge higher as Trump weighs Iran’s latest proposal to open Strait of Hormuz
The US president is unhappy with the latest Iranian proposal, a US official said on Monday. Iranian sources disclosed that Tehran’s proposal avoided addressing its nuclear programme until hostilities cease and Gulf shipping disputes are resolved.
Trump’s displeasure with the Iranian offer leaves the conflict deadlocked, with Iran shutting shipping flows through the Strait of Hormuz, which typically carries supply equal to about 20 per cent of global oil and gas consumption, and the US keeping in place its blockade of Iranian ports.
Brent crude rose to $108.13 per barrel, hovering near a three-week high, while US West Texas Intermediate went up to $96.48.
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Iran ‘standing up to the world’s greatest superpower’, Aragchi claims
Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran is “standing up to the world’s greatest superpower [the US]” and claimed Washington “has not achieved a single one of their goals”.
“That is why they have requested negotiations and we are looking into it,” he told reporters in St Petersburg. “We have not heard from Washington,” he added.
He also said the war demonstrated Iran “has great friends and allies like Russia” and thanked the Kremlin for its support.
Putin praises Iran’s ‘courage’ as Iranian foreign minister Araghchi visits Moscow
Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi visited Russia for high-level talks with president Vladimir Putin as diplomatic efforts continue to prevent further escalation.
Araghchi said he travelled to Russia “with the aim of continuing close consultations between Tehran and Moscow on regional and international issues” and described his meeting as “a good opportunity to discuss developments in the war and review the latest situation”.
“I am confident that these consultations and coordination between the two countries in this regard will be of particular importance,” he added.
During the meeting, Putin expressed support for Iran. “We see how courageously and heroically the Iranian people are fighting for their independence and sovereignty,” Putin told Araghchi. He added that he hoped they could get through a “difficult period” and that peace would prevail.
“For our part, we will do everything that serves your interests, the interests of all the people of the region, so that peace can be achieved as soon as possible,” Putin said, according to Russian state media.
Trump not satisfied with Iran’s peace proposal – report
President Trump is not satisfied with Iran’s latest proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the war, according to officials cited by The New York Times.
The Iranian proposal would decouple the issues of the Strait and Iran’s nuclear programme, leaving the latter to be discussed further at a later date.
US officials said accepting the deal could deny Trump a political victory while the White House stressed that “the president will only make a deal that’s good for the American people and the world”.
The talks remain deadlocked, with Iran insisting it will not make any immediate concessions on its nuclear programme.
Source: independent.co.uk