US-Iran war updates: Donald Trump claims ‘war is won’ as troops deployed and ‘negotiations’ intensify

Australia Post is lifting fuel surcharges for around 30,000 contract delivery businesses as it moves to offset rising petrol and diesel costs.

The changes do not apply to more than 250,000 MyPost Business customers or retail customers sending parcels through post offices.

From Monday, the Australia Post domestic parcel sending contract and StarTrack Courier fuel surcharge increased from 4.8 per cent to 12 per cent, while the StarTrack Express and StarTrack Premium fuel surcharge rose from 15.5 per cent to 22.7 per cent.

Australia Post said the increase was “a necessary change to help manage cost in a challenging environment”.

The United States has sent Iran a 15-point plan to end the war in the Middle East, according to two officials briefed on the diplomacy, reflecting the Trump administration’s eagerness to find an off-ramp from the conflict as it grapples with its economic fallout.

It was unclear how widely the plan, delivered by way of Pakistan, had been shared among Iranian officials and whether Iran was likely to accept it as a basis for negotiations. Nor was it clear whether Israel, which has been bombing Iran together with the United States, was on board with the proposal.

But the delivery of the plan showed that the administration was ramping up efforts to conclude a war, now in its fourth week, that has drawn in several other countries.

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Environment Minister Murray Watt has dismissed suggestions a $40 price cap for motorists trying to fill up their tanks, saying the government is considering the idea.

The plan was devised in 2019 by the Department of Environment and Energy before the war in Iran and has been obtained under FOI by former Senator Rex Patrick.

“We’re not considering this idea of a $40 price cap,” Mr Watt told reporters in Canberra.

“That comes from a document from the then-government which was released in 2019 and the situation has obviously changed between 2019 and 2026.”

“We will continue to consider what options might be necessary in the future but I can knock that one on the head.”

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has introduced a new bill to Parliament to double the penalties the consumer watchdog can hit dodge fuel retailers with.

“Our message to the fuel companies is very clear if you do the right thing by your customers, our government is here to support you and work with you,” he said.

“But if you take advantage of a foreign conflict and take Australians for mugs, the ACCC will throw the book you.

“That’s what these laws are about.”

President Donald Trump has announced that Iran did something “amazing” on Tuesday, gifting the US a secret present worth a “tremendous” amount of money.

The comment was made in the Oval Office while Mr Trump spoke to the press about progress in Iran.

Mr Trump spoke about Iran, but appeared to be speaking more specifically about a group of people he claims the US is now in negotiations with to resolve conflict in the Middle East.

“They (Iran) did something yesterday that was amazing,” Mr Trump said.

“They gave us a present... and the present arrived today.

“It was a very big present, worth a tremendous amount of money.”

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Education Minister Jason Clare says a $40 cap on petrol purchases remains part of Australia’s emergency fuel planning, but stressed the country is not currently facing the level of crisis required to activate rationing measures.

The contingency plan would see pumps automatically stop once a $40 limit is reached, but only if a national liquid fuel emergency is declared by the Governor-General on advice from Energy Minister Chris Bowen.

“I think it was originally set up under John Howard and that sets out the different sort of contingency measures that governments would take if needed,” he told the ABC.

“We’re not there yet.” Mr Clare also backed Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ warning that the economic fallout from the Iran conflict could rival past global crises, saying Australia may not be directly impacted by the conflict but is already feeling pressure through rising fuel costs.

“We’re not having bombs dropped on us, but we are being hit by it, and we’re being hit at the petrol station.”

A previously undisclosed government contingency plan reveals Australia once explored emergency petrol rationing that could restrict motorists to just $40 of fuel, which is roughly around 16 litres during a national supply crisis.

The 2019 strategy, obtained through a freedom of information request, set out how limits could be introduced if the Governor-General declared a liquid fuel emergency on the advice of the energy minister.

“A $40 ‘total transaction value’ limit was recommended by NOSEC and agreed by the Minister,” the plan reads.

The proposal outlined how pumps would automatically stop once the spending cap was reached, alongside efforts to reduce demand through carpooling and more efficient driving.

Emergency services and taxis would be exempt from the restrictions.

US President Donald Trump says Washington is in talks with Iran to end the war, even as the Pentagon prepares to deploy thousands of additional troops to the Middle East.

Speaking from the Oval Office, Mr Trump said senior members of his administration were engaged in negotiations with Iranian officials and suggested Tehran was seeking an agreement.

“We’re in negotiations right now,” he said.

“They’re doing it along with (Secretary of State) Marco (Rubio), (Vice President) JD (Vance) — we have a number of people involved. And I can tell you, the other side would like to make a deal.”

The comments come amid conflicting signals from Washington and Tehran about whether discussions are actually taking place. Iranian officials have publicly denied direct talks, with the speaker of Iran’s parliament, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, dismissing reports of negotiations as “fake news”.

Mr Trump has also indicated confidence in the United States’ military position, telling reporters: “We’re roaming free over Tehran – the city, not Iran the country. We can do whatever we want.”

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Iran has told International Maritime Organisation member states that “non-hostile vessels” may transit the Strait of Hormuz if they co-ordinate with Iranian authorities, the Financial Times reports, citing a letter.

The US-Israeli war against Iran has all but halted shipments of about one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas through the Strait of Hormuz, causing oil supply disruption.

In the letter circulated among IMO members on Tuesday, Iran’s foreign ministry said Tehran had “taken necessary and proportionate measures to prevent the aggressors and their supporters from exploiting the Strait of Hormuz to advance hostile operations against Iran,” the newspaper said.

Australia is a member of the IMO.

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US President Donald Trump says the conflict with Iran has reached a turning point, declaring the United States has secured a decisive advantage as negotiations continue.

“The war has been won”.

Speaking from the Oval Office, Mr Trump confirmed discussions were underway to end the war, involving senior members of his administration.

“We’re in negotiations right now. They’re doing it, along with Marco, JD, with a number of people doing it,” Mr Trump said.

He suggested Iran may now be seeking a deal following significant military losses.

“And the other side, I can tell you they’d like to make a deal, and who wouldn’t? If you were there, look, their navy’s gone, their air force is gone, their communications are done, that’s the biggest problem.”