Oman says planned Hormuz talks postponed

A senior Iranian official disclosed on Saturday that a meeting planned for Monday in Oman between Iran and Gulf states would focus on discussing the Strait of Hormuz, but it is unlikely to result in a signed agreement to regulate the vital waterway. Iran has been negotiating with Oman, which controls the opposite bank of the strait, for months regarding a deal that would govern transportation through it.

Oman has previously stated that other Arab countries in the Gulf back its negotiations. Tehran announced its intention to participate in a meeting with Gulf countries in Oman on Monday, although Oman has not officially announced the gathering, and other regional states have remained silent. Bahrain, however, announced on Saturday that it would not attend the meeting with Iran until diplomatic relations between the two nations are reestablished, according to state media.

The Iranian official, speaking anonymously, said the Monday meeting was called at Oman's request and would provide an opportunity to discuss other regional matters as well as the Strait of Hormuz. Iran continues to seek an agreement that would enable it to charge fees from ships using the strait, a demand that Oman rejects. Before the United States and Israel attacked Iran in February, initiating a war, approximately one-fifth of global oil supplies passed through the strait.

The surge in global oil prices over the past week follows the firing of U.S. and Iranian missiles at tankers in the strait, and Iran's Houthis allies in Yemen advancing near another crucial Middle East route for oil, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on the other side of the Arabian Peninsula.