Middle East08 August, 20262 min read
Iran Demands U.S. Withdraw Naval Blockade Before Reopening Strait of Hormuz
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Oman Hormuz deal near final; Strait closed until US meets demands. Iran demands payment of war damages and other conditions before reopening Hormuz.
Iran’s demands for Hormuz
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday there are no ongoing negotiations between Tehran and Washington as Iran set out steep demands for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Araghchi said the intermediaries were still making efforts to find ways to resume negotiations, but he tempered optimism by saying that “changes to maritime routes in the Strait of Hormuz are a technical and legal matter and do not mean that the Strait of Hormuz has been reopened.”
NBC News reported that Araghchi’s statement came a day after top Iranian security official Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr laid out conditions for reopening the strait, saying it would not do so “until America corrects its behavior.” The same NBC News account said Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary stated that the U.S. must withdraw its naval blockade, pay Iran damages for the war, unfreeze Iranian assets, lift sanctions on Tehran, and permanently end the conflict against Iran and its regional allies.
Oman talks, U.S. blockade
DW said Iran is in the final stages of reaching an agreement with Oman on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, with reports suggesting the deal would give Tehran oversight of vessels entering the Persian Gulf while Oman would manage outbound traffic. DW also said the arrangement, if finalized, could raise questions about freedom of navigation, security, and the balance of power in the Gulf, and it quoted analyst Megan Sutcliffe and former US diplomat Alan Eyre discussing what it could mean.
The Washington Post reported that Iranian officials said they were close to reaching an agreement with Oman over control of the Strait of Hormuz but that any deal would not reopen the waterway unless the United States met a list of demands, including payment of war damages to Tehran. In the same NBC News account, Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on Saturday that the traffic scheme would include demining efforts and assurances from Tehran that it would not fire on transiting vessels, while Oman condemned attacks on vessels attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday.
Reopening tied to conditions
N+ quoted General Hossein Mohebbi, spokesperson for the armed forces, saying the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz will depend on the United States fully accepting Tehran’s conditions and stopping interference in regional negotiations. Mohebbi added, “The moment the United States accepts Iran's conditions, the Strait of Hormuz will be reopened, without a doubt,” tying the decision to mechanisms and conditions established by Iran rather than negotiations between Tehran and Muscat.
CNBC Arabia said Iran reached the “final stages” of an agreement with Oman on new navigation routes in the Strait of Hormuz but reiterated that the strait will not be opened until the United States fulfills other conditions. CNBC Arabia also said an American official told Reuters that once the agreement is announced to resume unconstrained commercial shipping, the United States will lift the blockade on Iranian ports, with the official adding that the American steps would be tied to Iran’s implementation of its commitments.