AUSTRALIA PERSPECTIVE

ABC global affairs editor Laura Tingle, writing from Jerusalem, offers an incisive analysis of the Iranian plan: 'You might notice there is no mention of the future of Iran's nuclear capabilities, nor any real shift in Iran's claims to be able to control the Strait of Hormuz.'

The Iranian proposal reportedly includes demands that the US lift the naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, as well as sanctions on Iran, all hostilities including in Lebanon, and the withdrawal of all US forces from the region. But no mention of the nuclear program.

Tingle highlights the narrative impasse: 'Both sides continue to insist that they are winning.' The journalist notes the ceasefire has held since April 8 but that there is 'little sign of progress' diplomatically.

Australia, whose fuel supplies are 'steady for now,' observes the crisis with particular interest in the freedom of navigation question — a principle Canberra has always actively defended in international maritime law.