Will reopen Strait of Hormuz if US meets key commitments: Iran

TEHARN, Aug 29 : Iran has agreed with Oman on a route for the passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz and will reopen the strategic waterway if the United States meets commitments under a memorandum agreed in June, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Saturday.

"We agreed with Oman on the passage route through Hormuz, and if the US fulfils its commitments under the memorandum of understanding, we will open the strait," Pezeshkian said, according to Iran's official IRNA news agency.

He said the proposed route had been communicated to Iran's Supreme Leader and that Tehran was pursuing the issue.

Pezeshkian said the reopening would be linked to Washington lifting sanctions and the blockade, releasing frozen Iranian assets, beginning investment and ending the war in Lebanon.

"As far as the talks have progressed, they also accept that we must return to the memorandum of understanding," he said, referring to the US side.

The comments signal a possible framework for restoring commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global energy route that has been disrupted amid the conflict.

Pezeshkian said Iran's Supreme National Security Council had reached an "exceptional" consensus on the agreement, with 12 of its 13 members voting in favour.

He said sanctions and the blockade had initially been eased under the memorandum, while talks began on releasing frozen Iranian funds and plans were drawn up for investments worth about USD 300 billion.

Iran's imports and exports subsequently fell by between 25 and 35pc, Pezeshkian said.

He added that banking and petrochemical sanctions had been removed under the agreement and that Iran exported nearly 90 million barrels of oil while it remained in effect.

Pezeshkian said Tehran had also held discussions with Qatar and the United Arab Emirates on investment projects, but those plans could not move forward as long as the war continued.

Iran had been working to restore the Strait of Hormuz to its previous status, he said, but the failure to implement the agreement caused it to collapse.

Iran and Oman have been holding talks on arrangements for managing shipping through the waterway since the US-Iran memorandum collapsed last month.

Under the June agreement, Washington and Tehran had agreed to extend an April ceasefire and gradually restore shipping through the strait to prewar levels while pursuing negotiations on a broader settlement to end the conflict that began in February.

Pezeshkian also said Iran was facing severe domestic energy pressures as the conflict disrupted transport routes, restricted imports and reduced government revenues.

"We are in a state of war. First, we must understand that we are at war," he said, adding that gasoline supplies remained a major concern as routes were blocked and goods struggled to enter the country.

The president said the government had not yet decided when or by how much gasoline prices would rise. He said the only proposal under consideration was a third pricing tier for fuel consumed beyond the regular quota.

"The proposed rate for this third quota is around 10,000 tomans (USD 0.05). Rumours about a price of 50,000 tomans are not true," he said.

Any decision would require consultations with parliament and the judiciary, he added.

Pezeshkian urged Iranians to rely more heavily on public transport, saying attacks on power plants and oil and gas infrastructure had reduced energy production.

The government is also considering wider remote working, expanded public transport, stricter vehicle-efficiency standards and the electrification of taxis and motorcycles as measures to curb fuel consumption without imposing additional pressure on households. (UNI)