Talks with US won’t happen while interim deal is breached, Iranian minister says

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated on Sunday that the United States will not initiate talks until Washington ceases to breach an interim deal signed in June. Araghchi mentioned that exchanges are occurring through intermediaries. He reiterated Iran's stance that an agreement regarding the Strait of Hormuz, involving both Tehran and Muscat, is nearing completion, but the reopening of the strategic waterway remains contingent upon the US fulfilling additional conditions and compensating for the breach of the June agreement.

The IRGC declared that the strait would not reopen until the US accepts all of Iran's demands, describing it as a "theatre of war" rather than merely a shipping lane. The ongoing attacks in the strait, which were previously open, led to the breakdown of a ceasefire reached in April. Mediators have since called for both parties to resume negotiations based on the terms of the June memorandum.

Araghchi had previously indicated that discussions with Oman on transit and management of the strait were nearing completion, but emphasized that reopening Hormuz is subject to the fulfillment of other conditions and compensation for the breach of the June deal. Security chief Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr outlined a list of demands for the reopening of the strait, which includes an end to the war and aggression against Iran and its allies, lifting the US naval blockade, ending sanctions, releasing frozen assets, and compensating Iran for wartime damages.

The IRGC further stated that the reopening of Hormuz is unrelated to the negotiations with Oman, asserting that the "enemy is forced to accept Iran's conditions for the opening of the strait."