Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister says they are finalising its response to American comments regarding their plan, reports Al Arabiya

Back-channel messaging of this kind has been a recurring feature of US-Iran exchanges, with responses typically relayed through intermediaries or regional media before any formal document surfaces, and the substantive content generally lagging the signalling by days or weeks. The Al Arabiya attribution is itself notable: Saudi-aligned outlets have historically served as one of the conduits through which these tracks leak, and the choice of channel often carries as much information as the words. Statements that a reply is being finalised, without its substance disclosed, have in past episodes of this type been read as procedural rather than directional; the market distinction that matters is whether the exchange concerns a negotiating track, in which case crude risk premium has tended to soften on continuation, or a deterioration track, where the same silence has preceded escalation. The relevant transmission is through front-month crude, Gulf freight and insurance pricing, and any repricing of regional sovereign spreads rather than broader risk. The follow-ons worth noting are whether the response is delivered formally or leaked, the tone of any accompanying military or enrichment signals, and confirmation from the US side that a plan was actually transmitted.