Iran Sets Terms To Reopen Strait Of Hormuz As Qatar Pushes For US Talks

Iran is drawing up conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz after regional mediators asked Tehran to set out its demands, with security chief Mohsen Rezaei saying the US must first take practical steps.

Rezaei said Tehran was drafting the conditions in response to requests from mediators. His comments came as Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani visited Tehran as part of efforts to revive dialogue between Iran and the United States.

The Strait of Hormuz has become part of efforts to revive US-Iran diplomacy and end the war. Iran has restricted shipping through the waterway, while the US has maintained a naval blockade of Iranian ports. Washington and Tehran remain divided over the status of the strait.

Iran links reopening to US action

Rezaei said the US must take practical steps to fulfil Iran’s conditions before Tehran would reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to Al Jazeera. His comments came as regional mediators stepped up efforts to bring Tehran and Washington back to negotiations.

Iran has previously linked reopening the waterway to concessions from the US. Al Jazeera reported earlier this month that Tehran had demanded an end to US attacks, the lifting of the naval blockade and sanctions, compensation for war damage and the release of frozen Iranian assets.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps has also said the strait would not reopen unless Washington lifted what Tehran describes as a blockade of Iranian ports, paid compensation for war damage and removed sanctions. Rezaei said ending the regional war was among the conditions being prepared, according to Al Jazeera.

Qatar steps up mediation

Qatar’s prime minister met Iranian officials in Tehran on Thursday as part of a wider regional diplomatic effort. He discussed the Strait of Hormuz with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and later met President Masoud Pezeshkian and parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.

Al Jazeera reported that the discussions included a proposed temporary shipping corridor through the strait and a possible joint project to clear mines from the waterway. Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said the talks also focused on reducing escalation and creating conditions for renewed dialogue between Iran and the US.

The Qatari visit followed separate mediation efforts by Oman and Pakistan. Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi met Araghchi in Tehran earlier this week, while Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, also travelled to Iran as Islamabad sought to help break the stalemate.

According to Al Jazeera, Rezaei said Iran and Oman had agreed on a temporary shipping corridor through the strait. Tehran, however, continues to insist that the waterway will not fully reopen until Washington meets its demands.

Under the proposed arrangement, the corridor would run partly through Iranian and partly through Omani waters, with vessels using a middle channel if Washington meets Tehran’s conditions. The proposed arrangement would provide a route for shipping without resolving the wider dispute between Iran and the US over the waterway.

AP reported that Qatar’s prime minister travelled to Tehran as part of efforts to revive negotiations between Iran and the US, with the Strait of Hormuz among the issues under discussion.

Temporary route remains under discussion

The proposed Iran-Oman arrangement is separate from any broader agreement between Iran and the US. It would provide a temporary route for shipping while the wider dispute remains unresolved.

The proposed framework also includes a joint project to clear mines from the strait, according to Al Jazeera. Iran has said mines were laid during the war.

Washington says Hormuz is open

Washington disputes Tehran’s position on the waterway.

A US government source told Al Jazeera that agreements between Iran and Oman did not concern Washington, while maintaining that the Strait of Hormuz was open and mines had been cleared. The source also said no talks with Iran were scheduled and that the US naval blockade remained in place.

AP reported that Pakistan was continuing diplomatic efforts to help resolve the US-Iran conflict and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while Oman has been involved in negotiations over a temporary shipping arrangement.

Tehran is now preparing the conditions it says Washington must meet before Hormuz can reopen. With the US maintaining its blockade and saying no talks are scheduled, the proposed temporary corridor remains separate from any wider agreement between the two sides.