Negotiations focus on defining safe inbound, outbound shipping lanes that safeguard rights of both countries
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei on Tuesday said that talks with Oman on the Strait of Hormuz continued “positively”.
Speaking to Iran’s state-run broadcaster IRIB, Baqaei stated that the talks so far had been assessed positively at both the technical and political levels.
Oman has presented Iran with a plan backed by Gulf states to manage the Strait of Hormuz, including collecting voluntary fees for using it, according to regional sources. The Omani proposals are intended to serve as a basis to end the disruption to trade through the strait caused by the US-Israeli war on Iran.
“Iran is trying to develop the necessary mechanisms for future arrangements for managing shipping traffic in this strategic passage, in cooperation with Oman,” he told IRIB.
The negotiations focus on defining safe inbound and outbound shipping lanes that “safeguard the sovereign rights of both countries while taking into account the national security considerations of Iran and Oman”, Baqaei added.
The minister further stated that the outcomes of the talks “will be announced once they have concluded”.
Separately, a senior Iranian official said that Tehran was close to reaching an understanding with Oman on a new navigation arrangement for the Strait of Hormuz, provided the US stops interfering in the negotiations.
Speaking to Iran’s Press TV, the official said talks between Tehran and Muscat had entered “a new phase” and were centred on establishing “a new corridor” to ensure the safe passage of commercial vessels through the strategic waterway.
The official said an understanding with Oman was “within reach if the US stops interference”.
He accused US President Donald Trump of attempting to influence the talks and claim credit for the outcome, saying the actions had “only slowing the negotiating process”.
The proposed corridor would safeguard Iran’s sovereign interests as a littoral state while ensuring the safe transit of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, according to the official.
READ: Negotiations between Iran and Oman over Hormuz in final stages, Tehran says
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier today that Washington and Tehran had yet to finalise talks on passage through crucial international waterways, but he hoped an agreement would come “very shortly”.
“There’s been progress made in those talks, but not finality yet,” he added.
