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Iran, Oman agree on new temporary route in Hormuz
Confirmed
Iran and Oman, the two countries with coastline in the waterway, said in a joint statement Tuesday that they were discussing a proposal for a temporary route that would allow ships to transit through the Strait of Hormuz, as well as a plan to remove sea mines.
A top Iranian official says Iran and Oman have agreed on a new temporary route for shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, but insisted that the waterway will not reopen until the United States fulfils its commitments under an interim peace deal signed in June.
Oman's foreign minister said Tuesday he was "hopeful" a temporary route through the Strait of Hormuz would be announced "soon," after meeting with Iran. Then in June, when Iran and the US signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to end the war, Oman and the IMO announced a new transit corridor in the Strait of Hormuz – backed by the US – that hugged the Omani coast.
Gharibabadi, speaking on state television, said Iran and Oman had agreed the new route’s entry “would be through our territorial waters, and part of the exit route would also be through our territorial waters”. Gharibabadi, in his comments on Tuesday, said Iran would not consider the strait open despite the agreement with Oman.
Washington has turned to pulling economic levers six months into a war on Iran that has ground to a stalemate militarily, with peace talks stalled and most traffic through the crucial Strait of Hormuz blocked. "I am hopeful we will soon announce a temporary corridor for the Strait of Hormuz and practical arrangements to restore safe navigation," Oman's Foreign Minister Bdr Albusaidi said in a social media post.
Quoting anonymous Iranian sources, the Financial Times reported last week that Iran would fire missiles at U.S. targets in Europe if Mr. Trump stepped up military pressure over the Strait of Hormuz. Iran said the so-called southern route violated the MoU and launched attacks on ships using the corridor, resulting in the collapse of the interim deal.
The two countries have held regular meetings on the future management of the Strait of Hormuz as laid out in the memorandum of understanding signed in June. "Before any action is taken to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the United States must fully implement all of the commitments it has violated," he said.
President Trump said Tuesday that the U.S. was implementing a "Zero Tolerance" policy on any Iranian ships placing mines in the Strait of Hormuz, saying they would be "immediately and systematically destroyed. U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent, in announcing new sanctions targeting Iran on Monday, said President Trump was making phone calls to world leaders warning them to cease interactions with the Iranian regime.
Background
The Strait of Hormuz is a waterway between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. On the north coast lies Iran, and on the south coast lies the Musandam Peninsula under the Musandam Governorate of Oman, with a portion of the southwest of the peninsula under the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Wikipedia — Strait of Hormuz (CC BY-SA)
What's confirmed
- A top Iranian official says Iran and Oman have agreed on a new temporary route for shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, but insisted that the waterway will not reopen until the United States fulfils its commitments…
- Then in June, when Iran and the US signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to end the war, Oman and the IMO announced a new transit corridor in the Strait of Hormuz – backed by the US – that hugged the Omani coast.
- Gharibabadi, in his comments on Tuesday, said Iran would not consider the strait open despite the agreement with Oman.
- He also dismissed a claim by US President Donald Trump that all mines had been cleared from the strait’s international waters, saying it was “only aimed at calming the markets”.
- Iran and Oman, the two countries with coastline in the waterway, said in a joint statement Tuesday that they were discussing a proposal for a temporary route that would allow ships to transit through the Strait of…
- The two countries have held regular meetings on the future management of the Strait of Hormuz as laid out in the memorandum of understanding signed in June.
- "Before any action is taken to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the United States must fully implement all of the commitments it has violated," he said.
What's still developing
- Gharibabadi, speaking on state television, said Iran and Oman had agreed the new route’s entry “would be through our territorial waters, and part of the exit route would also be through our territorial waters”.
- The transit corridor would be seven miles (11.3km) wide, he said.
- Albusaidi said on X he hoped the countries would “soon announce” the corridor, adding that “future management of the strait and a permanent solution will follow in due course.
- Iran said the so-called southern route violated the MoU and launched attacks on ships using the corridor, resulting in the collapse of the interim deal.
- An oil tanker was disabled by an unidentified projectile on Tuesday near Oman’s Ash Shishah, close to the strait’s entrance, the United Kingdom’s maritime trade watchdog said.
- “We are urging countries not to succumb to American pressure regarding the sanctions that Washington wants to impose on us,” Gharibabadi said, adding that Washington was “mistaken about its ability to enforce its…
- He said an earlier US sanctions campaign under Trump had failed to achieve its goals and predicted new measures would meet the same fate.
- "Another issue is the termination of the war," he said.