US secretary of state says Iran ‘serious’ about deal

Iran is “serious” about reaching a deal with the United States, but any agreement must prevent it from developing a nuclear weapon, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday.

“I think they're are serious about getting themselves out of the mess that they’re in,” Rubio said in an interview with Fox News.

He pointed to Iran’s worsening economic conditions, including inflation, difficulties paying wages, as well as ongoing sanctions, saying: “All the problems that Iran had before the start of this conflict are still in place, and most of them are worse.”

“We have to ensure that any deal that is made … definitively prevents them from sprinting towards a nuclear weapon at any point,” he added.

Rubio's remarks came amid media reports suggesting Iran has floated a proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for the US lifting its blockade and ending the war, while deferring broader negotiations over its nuclear programme to a later stage.

EXCLUSIVE: @SecRubio issues a blunt warning to Iran, saying the U.S. will not tolerate any effort to hold international waterways hostage through extortion or threats of force:

“If what they mean by opening the straits is, yes, the straits are opened as long as you coordinate… pic.twitter.com/5zBbJsHMlQ

— Fox News (@FoxNews) April 27, 2026

On Iran's claim that the Strait of Hormuz is open, Rubio responded: “The straits are opened, as long as you coordinate with Iran, get our permission, or we'll blow you up and you pay us. That's not opening the straits.”

Read More: Iran looking into Trump's request for negotiations: FM Araghchi

“Those are international waterways. They cannot normalise, nor can we tolerate them trying to normalise, a system in which the Iranians decide who gets to use an international waterway, and how much you have to pay them to use it,” he added.

Iran and the US held talks in Islamabad on April 11 but failed to reach an agreement to end the war that began on February 28.

The negotiations followed a two-week ceasefire brokered by Pakistan on April 8, which was later extended by US President Donald Trump.

Trump cancelled a planned trip to Pakistan this weekend by special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.

Efforts are underway to organise another round of talks, though key sticking points include the Strait of Hormuz, the US blockade of Iranian ports and the future of Iran's nuclear programme.

About 20% of global oil supply passes through the strait daily and heightened insecurity has driven up oil prices as well as shipping and insurance costs.

Trump discusses new Iran proposal with national security aides

Separately,  White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Trump discussed a new Iranian proposal on resolving the war with Tehran with his top national security aides.

Answering questions at a briefing, Leavitt did not offer an opinion on the proposal, in which the Strait of Hormuz would be opened and Iran's nuclear programme would be discussed at a later date. But she said Trump's bottom-line demands remain the same.

Trump wants the Strait of Hormuz oil transit waterway to be open and for Iran to hand over its enriched uranium.

"I wouldn't say they're considering it. I would just say that there was a discussion this morning that I don't want to get ahead of, and you'll hear directly from the president, I'm sure, on this topic," she said.