Tehran Hardens Stance: 'No Talks with US' – Six Conditions for Opening Hormuz

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi declared that there are no negotiations with the US, only exchanges of messages through mediators. He set six conditions for opening the Strait of Hormuz, including cessation of military operations, lifting sanctions, and withdrawal of forces. Meanwhile, Oman condemned attacks on ships in the strait, and the UAE accused Iran of attacking an oil tanker.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated today (Sunday) that there are no negotiations between Iran and the United States, and that contact between the sides is currently conducted only through mediators. "There are no talks with the US, only exchanges of messages through mediators," Araghchi said, according to a report by the Iranian news agency Mehr. He said the mediators continue to work to find a way to resume talks, but Tehran is not ready to return to the negotiating table under current conditions. "As long as the US violations of the memorandum of understanding do not cease, and as long as Washington does not compensate for its violations, there will be no possibility of resuming negotiations," he said. Meanwhile, Araghchi addressed contacts with Oman regarding the future of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. He said the sides are working on establishing a new maritime route and the talks are in their "final stage." "The old routes will be replaced by new ones," he said, adding that Iranian and Omani experts are working on formulating them. The existing shipping routes were set in 1968, but after the recent war, Tehran realized changes are needed. Tehran set six conditions for opening the shipping route: change its conduct, stop military operations against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, the Palestinian territories, Yemen, and Iraq, lift sanctions, withdraw American forces from around Iran, pay compensation, and release Iranian assets frozen abroad. These remarks come after Oman's Foreign Ministry yesterday (Saturday) condemned attacks on ships in the strait, calling them "a violation of international law and the sovereignty of territorial waters." The UAE accused Iran of attacking an ADNOC oil tanker with a missile, and UKMTO reported a ship hit by an unidentified missile near Khasab in Oman.