TEHRAN, Iran, Aug. 15: Iran said Oman had agreed on a Strait of Hormuz route map for the Gulf waterway, but the announcement did not amount to a final reopening agreement.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told Defa Press that Tehran and Muscat had settled the route’s geographical coordinates after weeks of technical negotiations. He said the talks accelerated over the previous three weeks.
Baghaei said a joint Iran-Oman statement remained under negotiation and exchanges would continue until the process was finalised.
The spokesperson said Iran’s Foreign Ministry coordinated the plan with the country’s defence, security and environmental authorities. He described it as an independent arrangement between the two coastal states to protect safe passage and their sovereign rights.
Baghaei linked the talks to the June 18 Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding between Iran and the United States, which directed Tehran to consult Muscat on future administration and maritime services in the strait.
Oman’s Foreign Ministry said on July 11 that officials from both countries had agreed in Muscat, Oman’s capital, to continue political and technical talks on safe navigation under international law. A June 23 Iran-Oman statement said a joint committee would examine future shipping management, services and related costs.
Read: Qatar Rejects Iran Claim It Holds Three Su-24 Pilots
Baghaei accused Washington of obstructing the talks. He said normal commercial shipping depended on the United States ending what he called illegal actions, military threats and a naval blockade, and compensating Iran for alleged breaches of the memorandum during the previous two months.
