Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has returned to Iran from the UN General Assembly in New York. At a cabinet meeting, he presented a US counterproposal to President Masoud Pezeshkian, Iranian state media reports.
The agreement must now be based on a "win-win" strategy, Pezeshkian said, according to AP.
It is not clear at this stage what the counterproposal contains, or whether it is simply a negative response. The US has not commented on the matter.
Bid with conditions
Qatar is reported to have been mediating intensively between US and Iranian representatives in recent days. Iran had said it wanted a response by Tuesday, before its delegation was due to leave the US.
Iran initially proposed a ceasefire in which it would allow ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz again, if the US met its demands, including by lifting sanctions, lifting the naval blockade and making some frozen Iranian assets available.
US President Donald Trump initially dismissed this, causing oil prices to rise again. There have been media reports that Trump is prepared to make some concessions, which he has strongly denied.
The rial hits record low
Iran has said it is ready to go to war again if the United States does not meet its demands. According to new and unconfirmed media reports on Wednesday, Donald Trump is also considering escalating the conflict again, but only after the mid-term elections in the United States this fall.
Three new attacks on ships occurred in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, according to the British Royal Navy's Maritime Traffic Watch. At least one attack took place on Tuesday.
The US has introduced more and more measures to isolate Iran, and the Iranian rial has fallen to a record low in recent days.
