IRANIAN Foreign Minister Esmaeil Baghaei says talks with Oman on ensuring safe shipping through the Strait of Hormuz are ‘purely bilateral, between the two littoral states, and concern no one else.’
Tehran is not currently engaged in any negotiations with the United States.
Speaking at his weekly press conference yesterday, Baghaei was asked about remarks by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi regarding the finalisation of an understanding (with Oman) and whether indirect consultations through mediators are aimed at restoring all provisions of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that Washington has violated.
Iran is insisting the United States carries out the peace deal it had agreed.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has described the historic Islamabad MoU signed with the US in June as the future ‘centre of gravity’ of the Islamic Republic’s foreign policy, and the US must be compelled to honour its commitments.
In a post on X on Sunday, Pezeshkian wrote: ‘The (Islamabad) memorandum that was signed is the result of the collective wisdom of the Supreme National Security Council’s members, and all members are in sympathy with it.
‘I believe this memorandum will be the centre of gravity of our foreign relations in the future. We must strive to compel the enemy to remain committed to what it has signed. The security of the country, the region, and our allies will be enhanced by this memorandum.’
The 14-point Islamabad MoU, signed remotely on 18 June 2026 by President Pezeshkian and US President Donald Trump under the mediation of Pakistan, marked a decisive step toward ending the war of aggression imposed on Iran by the US and the Zionist regime of Israel.
The agreement, which entered into force immediately, extended the ceasefire, committed both sides to negotiations for a final settlement, and included provisions for the lifting of the illegal US naval blockade, oil export waivers, and restoration of commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
From the outset, Iran said the MoU was a clear demonstration of the Islamic Republic’s strength and the failure of the enemy’s military and economic pressure.
Pezeshkian previously hailed it as a ‘historic document’ and a testament to a powerful Iran, while Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf described it as a ‘declaration of America’s defeat’.
Meanwhile, an understanding between Iran and Oman on a new maritime traffic route through the Strait of Hormuz is merely a necessary step for organising safe vessel passage and does not amount to the reopening of the strategic waterway, Baghaei said on Sunday.
He stressed that the continued closure of the Strait of Hormuz is the direct result of the US’s violation of agreements and its ongoing harassing measures against the Islamic Republic of Iran.
‘The understanding with Oman regarding a new shipping lane is solely a prerequisite for regulating maritime traffic. It does not mean the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
‘The Strait remains closed because of American treaty-breaking, the naval blockade of Iran, and the series of disruptive actions Washington has carried out against the Islamic Republic.’