Tehran has set a number of new conditions that the US must meet if it wants shipping in the Strait of Hormuz to be restored. The US must “correct its behavior”, Iran says. What else is it expecting?
Iran has set new conditions for the potential opening of the Strait of Hormuz. At the same time, the UAE announced that one of its ships was hit by an Iranian missile.
US to "correct its behavior"
Iran's Supreme National Security Council announced that the Strait of Hormuz will not be opened until the US "corrects its behavior". The new conditions that Tehran is setting are likely to further complicate reaching an agreement. The US must never threaten Iran again and must definitively end the war with both Iran and Iran's armed allies in the region, said the statement by Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council.
In addition, Tehran expects Washington to lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports and provide "full compensation" to Iran for the damage caused during the war. Iran also expects sanctions to be lifted and all assets to be unfrozen "unconditionally".
There has been no comment from Washington so far. According to the interim agreement, which was signed in June, there is a planned timetable for the lifting of sanctions, and compensation for damage caused during the war is also expected to be part of the final deal. Further negotiations were planned for the frozen Iranian assets.
Separate Iran deal with Oman
Tehran announced that it is in the process of finalizing a separate deal with Oman on the issue of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said earlier that they were close to reaching an agreement, but said reopening the waterway depended on other conditions and blamed what he called a violation of the interim agreement by the United States for the situation.
The agreement that Iran and Oman are currently working on would be temporary but would allow the strait to reopen, with ships entering via a route close to Iran and exiting via a route close to Oman, according to two people familiar with the negotiations, quoted by The Associated Press. During this transitional period, ships would pass through the strait without paying fees or duties.
The agreement aims to restore an earlier, separate agreement between the United States and Iran and restart a 60-day period during which the two countries could negotiate over Iran's nuclear program. During that time, Iran is expected to be able to sell oil. The current 60-day deadline for negotiating a final agreement expires in a little over a week.