The Islamic Republic of Iran has said it will not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the United States meets seven conditions contained in a June interim agreement between both countries.
Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, speaker of Iran’s parliament and the country’s top negotiator, outlined the conditions on Sunday.
Qalibaf said Iran had presented a proposal at the recently concluded 81st United Nations General Assembly for the waterway to reopen and normal maritime traffic to resume within seven days if the conditions were met.
He said the US responded to the proposal last week through Qatari intermediaries.
“The position of the Islamic Republic of Iran is completely clear and firm, and the Strait of Hormuz will not be opened until our seven conditions, based on the Islamabad memorandum of understanding, are met,” Iranian state media quoted Qalibaf as saying.
He added that Washington must understand that “the period of dragging out the diplomatic process and dictating one-sided demands is over”.
Esmaeil Baghaei, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, said Tehran had communicated its broad position on the US response through mediators, but that further points were still to be conveyed to Washington.
Baghaei said the US proposals largely reflected its previous positions, particularly on Iran’s nuclear programme.
“The Americans’ propositions are more or less in line with their previous positions, specifically on the nuclear issue,” he said.
“We told them our focus at this stage is the issue of the Strait of Hormuz, and the return to security in this waterway requires clear steps from the US.”
Baghaei also denied reports that Iran had offered to allow inspections of its nuclear facilities by the UN nuclear watchdog in exchange for sanctions relief.
He said Tehran had not entered into nuclear negotiations with Washington.
An official briefed on the talks said the proposal under discussion included a seven-day confidence-building period aimed at restoring an enhanced version of the June memorandum of understanding (MoU).
The plan reportedly includes specific measures concerning Iran’s nuclear programme.
The official said the disagreement between the two sides was mainly over the sequence in which the measures would be implemented, rather than the components of the proposal.
Qatar has been mediating between Washington and Tehran in an effort to end the conflict and secure the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
The waterway, which connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman, carried about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies before the war began in late February following US and Israeli attacks on Iran.
The June MoU had resulted in a brief ceasefire and included provisions relating to the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s nuclear programme.
Meanwhile, Abbas Araqchi, Iran’s foreign affairs minister, told foreign ambassadors and diplomats in Tehran on Sunday that his country hoped Washington would choose diplomacy.
Araqchi warned that Iran was prepared to respond if the US resumed military action.
“if they again move towards military solutions, we are more prepared than before and will take whatever action is necessary to defend ourselves,” he said.
On Thursday, sources told Reuters that Iran was preparing a broader and stronger response if Washington resumed large-scale military attacks.