Iran links Strait of Hormuz reopening to seven conditions
Iranian officials say the waterway will stay closed until Washington accepts Tehran’s terms, while the two governments remain focused on different priorities.
Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf says the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until the United States accepts Iran’s seven conditions for reopening it. He said Washington had sent proposals through a mediator, but described Tehran’s position as firm.
The conditions are based on an Islamabad memorandum, according to Ghalibaf; the supplied report does not detail them. US President Donald Trump rejected an Iranian proposal to reopen the strait last week, the report says. It does not include a US response to the latest statements.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran was open to diplomatic solutions and hoped Washington would accept its proposal. He also said Iran would take necessary action to defend itself if the US took military action again.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said reopening the strait was Tehran’s main focus. He characterised the US as continuing to focus on nuclear talks.
The Al Jazeera report says the strait has been largely blocked and disrupted for more than seven months, since US and Israeli strikes on Iran began on 28 February. It also says roughly one-fifth of global oil and natural gas passes through the waterway in peacetime.
