Iran says the latest US proposal has ‘narrowed the gaps'

Iran said the latest proposal from the U.S. has partly bridged the gap between the warring sides, as they seek to turn a fragile ceasefire into a peace deal.

Tehran is in the process of responding to a text submitted by the U.S., which "has narrowed the gaps to some extent," the semi-official Iranian Students' News Agency reported on Thursday, without saying where it got the information. "Further narrowing requires an end to the temptation for war on Washington's part."

The exchange of messages is based on Iran's 14-point text from several weeks ago, the Iranian foreign ministry said separately. That plan essentially suggests a short-term deal that would see Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. lift a blockade of Iranian ports, with the warring sides then going into deeper negotiations over Tehran's nuclear program.

Iran gave no indication of when it would formally answer the U.S. The Iranian foreign ministry reiterated it wants a commitment that fighting will end "on all fronts, including Lebanon." It also called for the unfreezing of sanctioned assets.

Field Marshal Asim Munir, who has positioned himself as the most powerful person in Pakistan, is visiting Tehran on Thursday, ISNA reported. Islamabad is the main mediator between the sides.

The developments follow renewed threats of escalation between the U.S. and Iran as their stand-off drags on.

President Donald Trump told reporters on Wednesday that the U.S. was in the "final stages" with Iranian diplomacy, sparking investor hopes a deal was close. U.S. Treasury prices jumped and oil dropped.

But the president then warned he may resume attacks in the coming days if Iran didn't agree to his terms, a threat he has made multiple times since a ceasefire took effect on April 8.

"We'll either have a deal or we're going to do some things that are a little bit nasty," he said. "But hopefully that won't happen."

Key sticking points between the sides include Iran's nuclear enrichment and its stocks of highly-processed uranium. The U.S. is demanding Tehran hands over the latter, due to fears Tehran may use it to build an atomic bomb, and commits to ending enrichment for at least a decade. Iranian leaders have balked at those in public.

Reuters, on Thursday, reported that Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei had issued a directive that the country's near-weapons-grade uranium should not be sent abroad. Reuters cited two unnamed Iranian people familiar with the matter.

Iran has consistently rejected calls to ship the enriched-uranium stockpile to the U.S., but has indicated it could move it to a third country. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi last week thanked Russia, a key ally to Tehran and a party to the last Iran nuclear deal in 2015, for its offer to take the material, while cautioning that the idea wasn't currently under discussion.

Oil reversed losses after the Reuters report, rising 2$ to $107 a barrel. The benchmark is up 45% since the conflict began.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian insisted the country was not on the brink of giving in. "Forcing Iran to surrender through coercion is nothing but an illusion," he posted on X on Wednesday.

Another point of contention is Lebanon, where Israel - whose attacks on Iran alongside the U.S. started the war in late February - is fighting Tehran-backed Hezbollah militants. Israel has resisted the idea of pulling its troops out the Arab country. A ceasefire on that front is fragile, with Israel and Hezbollah continuing attacks daily.

Axios, citing unnamed sources, reported that Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had a tense call on Tuesday. It didn't give details on what the U.S. leader told Netanyahu, who has said he doesn't trust Iran to abide by any peace deal and has signaled that strikes on the Islamic Republic must resume at some point. Israel argues that that Iran's military should be degraded further.

The report came shortly after Trump told reporters that Netanyahu would "do whatever I want him to do."

Israel's energy minister, Eli Cohen, said there would be no "sacred cow" in Iran if fighting restarted.

"The next stage will entail hitting economic targets, energy sites - oil, gas and power stations," he said to Kim Baram radio on Wednesday.

Earlier, Iran warned it would retaliate beyond the Middle East if the U.S. or Israel renewed hostilities.

"If aggression against Iran is repeated, the regional war that had been promised will this time extend beyond the region," the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency. The IRGC, which has gained even more influence over Iranian decision-making since the war erupted, vowed "crushing blows in places you do not expect."

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-With assistance from Dan Williams.

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This story was originally published May 21, 2026 at 8:56 AM.