Iran says reopening Strait of Hormuz hinges on US guarantees to end war

Iran said Thursday that reopening the Strait of Hormuz hinges on the US providing "objective guarantees" to end the war on all fronts and fulfilling commitments under a seven-day diplomatic initiative presented by Tehran, according to the official IRNA news agency.

Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh told Russia-1 television that Tehran also wants the release of frozen Iranian assets, the lifting of the blockade and other measures.

Iran's seven-day initiative lays out a sequence of reciprocal steps under which Washington would first implement measures sought by Tehran, including ending hostilities, releasing frozen Iranian assets, lifting oil restrictions and ending the naval blockade.

Iran would then be prepared to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and begin negotiations on a final agreement within the seven-day framework.

Khatibzadeh said Tehran presented the initiative to Washington through Qatar and later received the US response through the Qatari mediator.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi provided Iran's initial response to the mediator during a brief stop on his return from New York, he added.

"The ball is in the US court," said Khatibzadeh.

He said Tehran continues to seek a diplomatic solution despite what he described as repeated US breaches of previous understandings, while maintaining maximum defensive readiness for "any scenario."

The diplomatic push follows the Islamabad understanding reached between Iran and the US on June 18 with mediation by Pakistan and Qatar. The agreement included provisions for ending hostilities, reopening the Strait of Hormuz and beginning a new round of negotiations. But its implementation later stalled amid renewed tensions between Tehran and Washington.

The US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, prompting Tehran to retaliate against Israeli targets and US military facilities across the region. The war also severely disrupted navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global energy supplies.

Iran has since linked the full reopening of the strait to measures including an end to hostilities, sanctions relief, the release of frozen assets and implementation of commitments it said Washington previously made.

On relations with Russia, Khatibzadeh said the two countries' strategic partnership was expanding in the economic, political, security, military and cultural fields, noting that "many potential and untapped capacities remain."

He urged closer cooperation among Iran, Russia and China in response to what he described as US violations of international law.

Initiatives such as BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization represent a response to problems in the international system and offer hope for a "fairer world" based on accepted rules, he said.