Iran's senior security official Mohsen Rezaei has dismissed reports of ongoing negotiations with the United States, saying Tehran is awaiting a clear response from Washington to its conditions for ending the conflict and reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
Speaking to Al Mayadeen television on Tuesday, Rezaei described reports of continuing negotiations and a possible meeting in Qatar as false. He said Iran would not reopen the strategically important waterway until the United States addressed its seven conditions.
Editorial Insight
Key Highlights
Important points readers should notice.
Mohsen Rezaei rejected reports of ongoing negotiations between Iran and the United States.
Iran says the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until Washington addresses its seven conditions.
The complete list of the seven conditions has not been publicly released.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the waterway could reopen within two days if an agreement is reached.
Marco Rubio said US economic pressure was reducing the need for major combat operations.
The IRGC claimed three oil tankers caught fire after striking naval mines.
Rezaei said Washington's initial response to the conditions was insufficient and that Tehran was still waiting for a clear and explicit reply.
Iran has not publicly released the complete list of its seven conditions. However, statements by Rezaei and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi indicate that the demands include ending hostilities on all fronts, lifting economic sanctions, releasing frozen Iranian assets and ending the US naval blockade of Iranian ports.
Araghchi has said that the Strait of Hormuz could reopen within two days if an agreement is reached. He also maintained that the conflict could not be resolved through military action or increased sanctions, calling for diplomacy to address Iran's demands.
Editorial Analysis
Why This Matters
The Strait of Hormuz is a critical international shipping route for oil and liquefied natural gas. Continued disruption can affect energy supplies, shipping costs and international markets. For India, which depends significantly on imported energy, prolonged instability in the waterway could increase uncertainty over energy transportation and import costs.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington remained open to diplomacy but did not currently see a need for major combat operations against Iran if economic measures could achieve the same objectives.
Speaking to reporters in Paris during the G7 foreign ministers' meetings, Rubio said the US economic campaign against Iran was having a significant impact. He said he had conveyed to allied countries that the economic pressure was sufficiently strong to reduce the need for further major military operations.
Maritime security concerns also continued in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed on Tuesday that three oil tankers had caught fire after striking naval mines while travelling through what it described as an unauthorised route in the eastern part of the strait.
The IRGC did not publicly identify the vessels in its statement. Separately, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency reported incidents involving two tankers in the region, including a vessel struck by an unidentified projectile northeast of Oman's Lima village.
The developments underline the continuing uncertainty surrounding diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran. The dispute over Iran's conditions, US economic pressure and security risks to commercial vessels remain major challenges to restoring normal maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
