U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that there is "slight progress" in negotiations with Iran through mediators, as the prospect of a deal to turn a fragile ceasefire into a long-term peace agreement remains uncertain, Bloomberg reports, according to UNN.
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"I don't want to overstate it, but there is some small movement, and that's a good thing," Rubio said at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Sweden on Friday.
Tehran is considering the latest proposal submitted by the U.S. via Pakistan but has given no indication of when it will officially respond. The status of the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial conduit for global energy supplies, and Iran's nuclear program remain the primary stumbling blocks.
Iran's Ambassador to France, Mohammad Amin-Nejad, told Bloomberg on Wednesday that his country is discussing with Oman some form of a permanent toll system for passage through the strait, which the U.S. deems unacceptable.
Trump demands Iran not charge tankers for passage through the Strait of Hormuz10.04.26, 09:29
Rubio said this would set a precedent for other regions of the world and that no country should agree to the introduction of tolls in the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. President Donald Trump stated on Thursday that he is against the idea.
"We want it open, we want it free, we don't want tolls," he told reporters at the White House. "It's an international waterway. They don't charge tolls now."
Oil prices rose, snapping a three-day decline, amid continued uncertainty over whether the U.S. and Iran have moved closer to a compromise. Brent crude rose above $105 a barrel, up 2.7%, remaining significantly higher than pre-war levels.
In addition to the Strait of Hormuz issue, the U.S. has repeatedly demanded that Tehran hand over its enriched uranium and commit to halting enrichment for at least ten years. Iranian leaders have publicly rejected this, with the country's President Masoud Pezeshkian stating on Thursday that "we will never back down" in negotiations.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held a new round of talks with Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on Friday, according to the semi-official Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA). Pakistan, the primary mediator, has been constantly shuttling between the two sides in recent days, trying to reach a compromise to advance the ceasefire agreement reached on April 8.
Pakistani Field Marshal Asim Munir, the lead mediator between Washington and Tehran, was expected to visit Tehran on Thursday, but there have been no reports of his trip so far.