Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf says US has ‘no alternative but to accept’ Tehran’s 14-point proposal to end war.
Published On 12 May 202612 May 2026
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Reporting from Washington — — After delivering a floor speech against the financial overhaul bill last week, Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) walked out of the Capitol into the spring sunshine and spoke optimistically of getting back to raising money for his reelection campaign — never mind the looming ethics cloud stemming from his admitted affair with an aide.
Days earlier, the scene couldn’t have been more different when another member of Congress, Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.), stood grim-faced behind a lectern and resigned his seat after admitting to an affair with a part-time staff member.
Souder’s final day in Congress was Friday. But Ensign — who like Souder is a conservative Christian who stresses family values — soldiers on, determined to keep his seat in Congress.
The Nevadan has started organizing fundraisers and making calls to donors for help in winning a third term in 2012. Ensign, once a rising star in the Republican leadership, collected a mere $50 during the first quarter of this year, but he’s confident that is about to change.
“We just took some time off,” Ensign said as he walked back to his Senate office. “We’re getting it geared back up.”
The reasons why one member of Congress stays and one goes are as varied as the egos involved, the politics of the moment and the proximity of the next election.
House Minority Leader John A. Boehner of Ohio made it clear in a talk with Souder, who was seeking a ninth term this fall, that the best choice would be to resign. House Democrats similarly eased out one of their own, Rep. Eric Massa of New York, this year after he was accused of sexually harassing his staff.
In the Senate, Republicans may grumble over Ensign’s continued presence, and they do. But the Nevadan carries on, raising the question of just how effective can he be on behalf of his constituents?
One perk for those who give robustly to the Senate Republicans’ campaign arm is that they are routinely invited to chats with senators. Ensign headlined one such coffee talk this month.
Given the chance to hear Ensign speak, one GOP donor declined. “They offer Ensign and you think, ‘Who in the hell is going to want to sit through that?’ ” said the donor, who requested anonymity because of his continuing involvement in Republican politics.
“Senators want to keep their distance from the guy,” the donor said. “I don’t think you’re going to see Sen. Ensign championing any GOP initiatives.”
But others predict Ensign’s fundraising efforts will challenge such criticism. After all, he remains a sitting U.S. senator as well as a reliable 41st vote that his party needs in order to maintain its ability to filibuster the proposals of President Obama and Senate Democrats.
If Ensign can persuade his big-name donors to stay with him — namely, the Nevada gaming interests — others will follow, said a Republican strategist in the state, who also declined to speak on the record because of the sensitive political situation.
Ensign’s problems began almost a year ago, when he abruptly arrived in Las Vegas to disclose an eight-month affair with a staffer, Cynthia Hampton, the wife of one of his former top aides at the time, Doug Hampton.
As details of the affair unfolded, so did the story of Ensign’s wealthy parents making a $96,000 payment to the Hamptons as the couple left the senator’s employment. Efforts by the senator to find the husband a new job also surfaced.
Ethics watchdogs seized on Doug Hampton’s claim last year to the New York Times that he went on to lobby Ensign’s office, with the senator’s support, in violation of the ethics laws that require a one-year cooling-off period.
Ensign has said he has done nothing wrong and will comply with all official investigations.
The Justice Department began making preliminary inquires in January. One Las Vegas tech firm, Selling Source, confirmed being subpoenaed by the Justice Department this year for documents regarding a fundraising pitch Ensign made to its chief executive.
“The Senate Ethics Committee seems to be going full steam ahead and there’s no way that can come out well for Ensign,” said Melanie Sloan, executive director of the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, noting then-Sen. Robert Packwood (R-Ore.) resigned in 1995 after a Senate investigation.
Many see Ensign as pursuing a strategy similar to that of Sen. David Vitter (R-La.), who kept a low profile after being connected to a prostitute but is now seeking a second term this fall.
The Nevadan benefits from his own healthy ego, as well as a Senate culture that has not expelled a member since the Civil War. He also perseveres thanks to a weak Republican Party in Nevada that is not calling for his head.
“He’s been an AWOL senator for a long time,” said Chuck Muth, a conservative activist in Nevada who is among a handful of political commentators in the state who have called for Ensign to resign.
“Who among his colleagues would want to co-sponsor a bill not knowing when he would implode? His effectiveness has clearly been diminished.”
Yet colleagues have come forward to work with Ensign on several initiatives. Sen. Thomas R. Carper (D-Del.) partnered with Ensign on an amendment during the healthcare debate and recently engaged in a colloquy on the Senate floor with Ensign and Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) after they returned from a tour of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Sen. Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii) teamed up with Ensign last month on legislation to establish a veterinary official in the Department of Homeland Security to protect against animal disease outbreaks or other similar disasters.
“It is unfortunate what has happened,” Akaka said about Ensign, a veterinarian, “but I continue to work with him as a good friend and a colleague.”
In a brief interview last week, Ensign displayed the confidence that has kept him in office. “I think we’ve been doing a lot of good things,” he said.
Oil markets face renewed instability following the United Arab Emirates’ formal exit from the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its wider alliance (OPEC+), announced on Tuesday and taking effect on Friday.
The move, which ends decades of membership, comes as the global economy continues to reel from the ongoing war with Iran and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz remains in place.
Investors are currently weighing the potential for higher future output from the UAE against the immediate and acute risks posed to global supply routes, as well as the increased chances that more countries drop out of OPEC and OPEC+.
Following the announcement, markets reacted swiftly as the potential for oversupply from the UAE was priced in. Oil prices fell by between 2% and 3%, particularly in futures contracts a couple of months ahead.
However, the move was just as quickly offset by the risk premium associated with the Middle East conflict and the current halt to US-Iran negotiations.
At the time of writing, US benchmark crude, WTI, is trading above $105 a barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, is over $112. Both prices are around 4% higher on Wednesday from the UAE announcement low.
The UAE’s decision follows years of simmering tension between Abu Dhabi and Riyadh over production quotas. The UAE has invested over $150 billion (€128bn) in the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) to expand its capacity to five million barrels per day.
However, under OPEC’s restrictive framework, much of this capacity remained underutilised, now prompting the government to prioritise its national interest.
The departure of the group’s third-largest producer is a significant blow to the cohesion of the 60-year-old organisation. Maurizio Carulli, global energy analyst at Quilter Cheviot, noted the limitations this exit places on the remaining members.
“Until tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is safe again, OPEC’s ability to stabilise prices is sharply constrained, while US producers have gained outsized influence,” Carulli explained.
While the UAE has pledged to bring additional production to the market in a “gradual and measured” manner, the sudden lack of coordination within OPEC has introduced a new layer of uncertainty.
For the UAE, the blockade served as a final catalyst for its exit. With its primary export route under threat, Abu Dhabi has sought the diplomatic flexibility to forge independent security and trade partnerships outside the traditional cartel structure.
Despite the geopolitical turmoil, energy equities have remained resilient.
According to Carulli, “integrated majors such as BP, Shell, TotalEnergies, ENI, Chevron and ExxonMobil are benefitting from a price uplift that could add 5-10% to operating cash flow for every $10 increase in oil prices.”
In a separate but related development, the security situation in the Middle East remains precarious despite a fragile ceasefire. Iran has recently offered a ten-point proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
In exchange for restoring maritime traffic, Tehran is demanding a full withdrawal of the US naval blockade and an end to the current hostilities.
US President Donald Trump, who recently extended the two-week ceasefire mediated by Pakistan, described the latest Iranian offer as “much better” than previous iterations but still did not accept the terms.
Shortly after, Trump posted on social media claiming that Iran is in a dire and desperate condition with no leverage to negotiate.
Washington continues to insist on a permanent settlement regarding Iran’s nuclear programme and an “unconditional” reopening of the waterway before sanctions are lifted.
The impact of this blockade on global energy security cannot be overstated.
“The prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz has removed roughly 12% of global oil supply from the market, according to the IEA, a bigger disruption than the Yom Kippur war, the Iran‑Iraq conflict, the invasion of Kuwait or even the fallout from Ukraine,” Carulli highlighted.
ISLAMABAD — Last-minute ceasefire talks between the United States and Iran looked uncertain Tuesday as a two-week truce was set to expire and both countries warned that, without a deal, they were prepared to resume fighting.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance, expected to lead U.S. negotiators if talks continue in Pakistan, remained in Washington on Tuesday, a White House official said. And Pakistan, which has been urging both sides to return to Islamabad, said it was still awaiting confirmation on whether Iran would participate.
Earlier in the day, two regional officials said Washington and Tehran had signaled they would hold a second round of talks, with Vance leading the U.S. team and Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf as its top negotiator. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief reporters.
But Pakistan’s information minister, Attaullah Tarar, said later Tuesday on X that Iran had not formally confirmed its participation, which was set to expire Wednesday.
Vance had policy meetings scheduled at the White House on Wednesday morning, said a White House official who was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. The vice president’s office and the White House did not immediately respond to messages asking whether Vance still intends to travel to Pakistan.
Both sides remain dug in rhetorically. President Trump has warned that “lots of bombs” will “start going off” if there’s no agreement before the ceasefire deadline, and Iran’s chief negotiator said that Tehran has “new cards on the battlefield” that haven’t yet been revealed.
The ceasefire, which began April 8, could be extended if talks resume, though Trump said in an interview Tuesday with CNBC: “Well, I don’t want to do that.”
“We don’t have that much time,” Trump said, adding that Iran “had a choice” and “they have to negotiate.”
White House officials have said that Vance would lead the American delegation, but Iran hasn’t said who it might send. Iranian state television on Tuesday broadcast a message saying that “no delegation from Iran has visited Islamabad … so far.”
On Tuesday, the U.S. said its forces boarded an oil tanker previously sanctioned for smuggling Iranian crude oil in Asia. The Pentagon said in a social media post that U.S. forces boarded the M/T Tifani “without incident.”
The U.S. military did not say where the vessel had been boarded, though ship-tracking data showed the Tifani in the Indian Ocean between Sri Lanka and Indonesia on Tuesday. The Pentagon statement added that “international waters are not a refuge for sanctioned vessels.”
The U.S. military on Sunday seized an Iranian container ship, the first interception under a blockade of Iranian ports. Iran’s joint military command called the armed boarding an act of piracy and a violation of the ceasefire.
The U.S. imposed the blockade to pressure Tehran into ending its stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping lane through which 20% of the world’s natural gas and crude oil transits in peacetime.
Iran’s grip on the strait has sent oil prices soaring. Brent crude, the international standard, was trading at close to $95 per barrel on Tuesday, up more than 30% from Feb. 28, the day that Israel and the U.S. attacked Iran to start the war.
Before the war began, the Strait of Hormuz had been fully open to international shipping. Trump has demanded that vessels again be allowed to transit unimpeded.
European Union transportation ministers were meeting Tuesday in Brussels to discuss how to protect consumers after the head of the International Energy Agency warned that Europe has “ maybe six weeks ” of jet fuel supplies remaining.
Over the weekend, Iran said that it had received new proposals from Washington, but also suggested that a wide gap remains between the sides. Issues that derailed the last round of negotiations included Iran’s nuclear enrichment program, its regional proxies and the strait.
Qalibaf on Tuesday accused the United States of wanting Iran to surrender.
“We do not accept negotiations under the shadow of threats,” he wrote in an X post.
Pakistani officials have expressed confidence that Iran will also send a delegation to resume talks that mark the highest-level negotiations between the U.S. and Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The first round April 11 and 12 ended without an agreement.
Pakistan said Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar met Tuesday with the acting U.S. ambassador in Islamabad to urge a ceasefire extension. Dar also met with the ambassador from China, a key trading partner with Iran.
Security has been tightened across Pakistan’s capital, where authorities have deployed thousands of personnel and increased patrols along routes leading to the airport.
Israel’s military said Tuesday it has sentenced two soldiers to 30 days in jail and removed them from combat duty for smashing a statue of Jesus Christ in Lebanon. Images of an Israeli soldier with a sledgehammer smashing the statue’s head emerged over the weekend, bringing widespread condemnation.
Israel said one of the soldiers being punished hammered the statue to the ground. The other filmed the destruction. The Israeli military said it replaced the statue.
Meanwhile, historic diplomatic talks between Israel and Lebanon were set to resume on Thursday in Washington, an Israeli, a Lebanese and a U.S. official said. All three spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the behind-the-scenes negotiations.
The Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors met last week for the first direct diplomatic talks in decades. Israel says the talks are aimed at disarming Hezbollah and reaching a peace agreement with Lebanon.
A 10-day ceasefire began on Friday in Lebanon, where fighting between Israel and Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants broke out two days after the U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran to start the war. Fighting in Lebanon has killed more than 2,290 people.
Since the war started, at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran, according to authorities. Additionally, 23 people have died in Israel and more than a dozen in Gulf Arab states. Fifteen Israeli soldiers in Lebanon and 13 U.S. service members throughout the region have been killed.
Ahmed, Gambrell and Bynum write for the Associated Press. Gambrell reported from Dubai, and Bynum reported from Savannah Ga. AP journalists Michelle Price, Aamer Madhani and Darlene Superville in Washington; Samy Magdy in Cairo; David Rising and Huizhong Wu in Bangkok; Sam McNeil in Brussels; Julia Frankel in New York; Bill Barrow in Atlanta and Russ Bynum in Savannah, Ga., contributed to this report.