President Donald Trump said on Tuesday the United States is talking to “the right people” in Iran to reach an agreement to end hostilities.
“We’re talking to the right people … they want to make a deal,” Trump told reporters.
He added that Iran wants to reach a deal very badly.
Iranian officials and commentators are increasingly portraying control of the Strait of Hormuz not just as a strategic advantage but as a financial asset that could help offset the costs of war.
According to international media reports, including Bloomberg and Lloyd’s List Intelligence, Iran has begun charging oil tankers for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian outlets such as the state-owned Mehr News Agency and Tabnak—affiliated with Mohsen Rezaei, senior military adviser to Iran’s new leader—had previously reported that Tehran was considering the strait as a potential source of revenue for the Islamic Republic.
News reports say Iran is charging around $2 million per tanker. However, because U.S. sanctions prevent Iran from conducting international banking, it remains unclear what currency is being used and who ultimately receives the payments.
Earlier, Iran’s Foreign Ministry announced that various countries and oil companies should contact Tehran directly to coordinate safe passage.
The idea of monetizing control of the strategic waterway has also been echoed in Iranian political commentary. The IRGC-linked daily Javan wrote that it was Iran’s new leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, who first introduced the concept.
“He revived a forgotten historical truth in the geopolitics of the Persian Gulf,” the newspaper wrote on Tuesday, March 24.
In an editorial titled “The Strait of Hormuz: Iran’s Winning Card in the Post-War Order,” Javan argued that the waterway should become a strategic lever for the Islamic Republic and “the most important fund to compensate Iran’s losses in the war.”
According to the paper, this framework was outlined in Mojtaba Khamenei’s first message to the nation.
Under the heading “A Strategic Package for Compensation of Losses,” the editorial said Iran now needs a comprehensive, multilayered doctrine to prevent circumvention of its new arrangements. Taxes, it said, would be based on “the nature of the cargo” and “the degree of cooperation between the ship’s country of origin and the aggressors.”
Javan estimated that under such a framework regional states would need to pay $50 per barrel to compensate Iran’s losses and contribute to reconstruction efforts.
Ships belonging to Israel and the United States, it added, would be barred from the strait even under a different flag.
Under a section titled “Redefining Negotiations,” the paper said Israeli and U.S. vessels could use the waterway only if one sanction on Iran were lifted for each passage.
The argument rests on the claim—advanced by Iranian commentators—that international law allows states to levy fees to ensure the security of waterways under their control.
With control over several islands and strategic points in the Persian Gulf, and full control of the waterway’s northern shore, Iran holds a uniquely strategic position, the IRGC-linked daily argued.
The paper concluded: “This package sends a clear message to all players inside and outside the region: the era of imposing sanctions on Iran is over, as no country can benefit from Persian Gulf security for free.”
Whether the United States, regional states, or their partners in South Asia would accept Tehran’s unilateral framework and comply with its demands remains uncertain.
The commander of the 82nd Airborne Division, Major General Brandon Tegtmeier, and his “command element,” members of his headquarters staff, have been ordered to deploy to the Middle East as the Pentagon and White House weigh sending the unit for possible land operations, Fox News reported on Tuesday.
Axios reporter Barak Ravid also reported, citing a US official, that the division’s command element and an infantry brigade of several thousand troops have been directed to deploy to the region.
In a separate report, Reuters reported citing unnamed officials that Pentagon is expected to send thousands of soldiers from the US Army’s 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East. The officials did not specify where the troops would be deployed or when they would arrive in the region. The soldiers are stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, the report said.
A day earlier, the New York Times reported citing defense officials that senior US military officials are weighing a possible deployment of a combat brigade from the 82nd Airborne Division and elements of its headquarters staff to support military operations in Iran.
The UK is examining plans to send a Royal Navy ship or lease a commercial vessel to act as a “mothership” for uncrewed systems to hunt and destroy mines in the Strait of Hormuz, The Times reported on Tuesday.
The plan would form part of a multinational force including France, the US and other countries, the report said.
A second phase could involve uncrewed boats and Type 45 destroyers working alongside allied ships to provide protection for tankers transiting the strait.
“We have world leading capabilities in terms of autonomous mine hunting … and also the development of hybrid navy concept … to help secure the strait,” The Times quoted an official as saying.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said people across several countries in the region and beyond are expressing anger toward the United States and Israel over the war.
“The people of Pakistan, Turkey, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt, and Arab countries are loudly expressing their disgust for America, Israel, and their crimes,” Pezeshkian said in a social media post.
“The hearts of the free people of the world are not with the Zionists,” he added.
Pezeshkian said lasting stability in the region would be possible only through “cooperation and respect for the will of the nations.”
Pakistan has offered to host talks between the United States and Iran aimed at ending a war that has rattled global energy markets. Here’s why Islamabad is involved—and whether it could work.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Tuesday that Islamabad was “ready and honoured to be the host” for direct or indirect negotiations if both sides agree.
The proposal comes amid reports that Pakistan has been relaying messages between the two sides and could potentially host discussions if they progress to that stage.
Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, spoke with President Donald Trump on March 23, while Sharif held a phone call with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian the following day as part of a push for de-escalation.
Trump announced a five-day pause in planned strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure on Monday, saying there had been “productive conversations” about potential diplomacy. Iranian officials, however, insist no direct negotiations with Washington have taken place.
Pakistan is one of several countries—alongside Turkey and Egypt—that appear to be passing messages between Washington and Tehran while encouraging diplomatic contacts.
What role is Pakistan playing?
Pakistan is positioning itself as both messenger and potential host.
Its prime minister and army chief have spoken with leaders in Washington and Tehran while publicly offering Islamabad as a venue should talks take place.
Pakistani officials describe the effort as part of broader back-channel diplomacy aimed at reducing tensions.
Why Pakistan?
Pakistan maintains working relationships with both Iran and the United States, giving it unusual access to the two governments.
Since 1992, Iran’s interests section in Washington—which handles limited diplomatic matters after the two countries severed relations in 1980—has operated under the protection of the Pakistani embassy.
Pakistan also has political and military ties with the United States. That combination allows Islamabad to communicate with both sides while avoiding the perception that it is fully aligned with either.
Has Pakistan tried this before?
Yes, though usually behind the scenes.
In 2019, then-Prime Minister Imran Khan publicly offered to mediate during a period of heightened US-Iran tensions after speaking with leaders in both countries.
Pakistan has periodically offered to help ease regional tensions, though mediation efforts have rarely moved beyond preliminary diplomacy.
Will it actually lead to negotiations?
That remains uncertain.
Iranian officials have publicly insisted that no negotiations with Washington are taking place. The White House has also avoided confirming any talks, saying it will not negotiate through the media.
Israel has meanwhile signaled that its military operations against Iran will continue regardless of diplomatic developments.
Pakistan’s proposal therefore represents a potential diplomatic channel rather than a confirmed breakthrough. Whether talks materialize will depend on whether Washington and Tehran conclude that diplomacy offers a way to limit the conflict.