UK and Iran meet as Tehran gives US ultimatum on Hormuz strait

UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband met Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in New York as Tehran issued the US a four-to-five-day ultimatum to respond to conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Senior Iranian security official Mohsen Rezaei said the seven preconditions, including lifting US sanctions and ending wars, must be met "completely and all at once," warning that failure would keep the strait closed with no negotiations. Araghchi earlier discussed the terms with US envoy Steve Witkoff, though US officials downplayed any breakthrough. The meeting marked the first UK-Iran ministerial exchange in a year, following Britain's proscription of the IRGC as a terrorist group. Miliband stressed freedom of navigation and consular access for a jailed British couple, while Iran-linked threats to close the Bab al-Mandab strait added regional tension.