Iran says Oman deal is in 'final stages' but US must act to open Hormuz

Iran said on Sunday that a deal with Oman defining new shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz was in its final stages but ‌reiterated that the strait would only reopen once the United States met other conditions.

A US official told Reuters on Friday that an agreement between Iran and Oman ​was close and could ⁠soon reopen the waterway, which carried a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments before Iran blocked it in response ‌to US and Israeli attacks.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi ‌said on Sunday an agreement on the strait that lies between the two countries was in the "final stages" but reiterated comments made on Saturday that it would not reopen it unless other conditions were met.

The agreement would set out the new shipping lanes to be used once the US fulfils those conditions and the strait is reopened, Iran's Mehr news agency quoted him ‌as saying.

Iran and the US are not engaged in talks and Tehran will not start them as long as Washington breaches an interim deal signed in June, Araqchi said, ⁠adding that messages are being exchanged via intermediaries.

IRAN SEEKS US COMPENSATION AND END TO SANCTIONS

The United States began air strikes on Iran in late February saying it aimed to ensure the Islamic republic could not acquire nuclear weapons or threaten the region with missiles or proxies. It agreed a ceasefire with Iran in June, but reimposed a blockade on Iranian shipping in the Gulf in July, which Tehran said was a violation of the truce that had already broken down.

"Once the deal is announced to restore commercial shipping without impediments, the United States will lift the blockade of Iranian ports," the US official told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

US actions would be tied to Iran's implementation of its commitments, ​the official said. The US comments indicated delicate sequencing towards a deal that sources had told Reuters appeared to be set to give Tehran control over ‌ships entering the Gulf through the strait, something shippers said was not easily workable.

The latest status of the agreement was not clear and Iran's response suggested other factors would also come into play.

Araqchi said reopening the strait would depend on conditions including US compensation to Iran for its widespread attacks.

The secretary of Iran's top national security body, Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr, also ⁠listed ending US threats against Iran, stopping aggression against Iran and its Lebanese, Palestinian, Yemeni and Iraqi allies, lifting a blockade and sanctions on Iran and freeing Iranian assets.

Reuters