Iran said it was nearing a final agreement with Oman to define new shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz, but maintained that the strategic waterway would not reopen until the US meets several conditions, including compensation and an end to sanctions and military threats.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Sunday that the agreement with Oman was in its “final stages”, while reiterating that Tehran would not reopen the channel unless Washington met demands set by Iran.
The proposed deal would establish new shipping lanes to be used once the US fulfils the conditions and the strait is reopened. Iran and the US are not engaged in direct talks, with Araqchi saying Tehran would not begin negotiations as long as Washington breaches an interim agreement signed in June. Messages are instead being exchanged through intermediaries.
US President Donald Trump said the US was “low-keying” its approach towards Iran, adding that Washington was only “semi-negotiating” while monitoring Iran’s economic situation.
Iran Sets Conditions
Araqchi said reopening the Strait of Hormuz would depend partly on the US paying compensation for damage caused by widespread attacks on Iran.
Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr, secretary of Iran’s top national security body, also listed an end to further US threats against Iran, a halt to aggression against Iran and its Lebanese, Palestinian, Yemeni and Iraqi allies, removal of a US naval blockade in the Gulf, lifting sanctions on Iran and releasing frozen Iranian assets.
The US and Israel launched air strikes on Iran more than five months ago. Trump has said the attacks were aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons and reducing its ability to threaten the region.
Washington and Tehran agreed to a ceasefire in June, but the US reimposed a blockade on Iranian shipping in the Gulf in July. Tehran said the move violated the truce, which had already broken down by then.
A US official said Washington would lift the blockade of Iranian ports once an agreement is announced to restore commercial shipping without impediments. US actions would be tied to Iran’s implementation of its commitments, the official said.
The proposed arrangement has raised questions among shippers, with sources saying it appeared to give Tehran control over vessel traffic entering the Gulf through the strait, a system that shipping industry sources said would not be easily workable.
The United Arab Emirates also said on Saturday that Iran had attacked a ship affiliated with its state oil company. Iran did not immediately comment, although its Revolutionary Guard Corps has previously attacked vessels it said attempted to cross the strait without Iranian permission.
Houthis Attack Saudi Refinery
The tensions around Strait of Hormuz shipping have coincided with increased attacks by Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen, who have targeted vessels around another key oil chokepoint between the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
The Houthis declared a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea last month, saying it was in response to what they described as a Saudi siege in Yemen. Riyadh has denied the allegation and backs Yemen’s internationally recognised government.
The group said it attacked Saudi Aramco’s Jazan refinery on Sunday, two days after Saudi Arabia signed a defence pact with Turkey and Pakistan amid growing regional instability.
Saudi Arabia’s energy ministry said a fire broke out at the refinery but was later extinguished without injuries. It did not give a cause for the incident.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said the new alliance was not directed against Iran or any other country, describing it instead as a general pledge to support security.
Reuters
