Iran maintains Strait of Hormuz closure, demands US meet conditions for reopening

Iran has enforced a blockade of the strait since late February following attacks by the United States and Israel, and seeks to impose tolls on passage, targeting ships accused of deviating from its preferred route. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi indicated that discussions with Oman regarding the strait's management are nearing completion, but emphasized that reopening Hormuz is contingent on other conditions and compensation for violations of a June agreement. He denied direct negotiations with the US, stating they are only exchanging messages through intermediaries.

Iran's security chief Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr previously outlined demands for reopening, including an end to "war and aggression against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen and Iraq," the lifting of a US counter-blockade on Iranian ports, an end to sanctions, the release of frozen assets, and compensation for wartime damage. The Revolutionary Guards declared their strategy is to maintain the closure "until the enemy accepts all our conditions," viewing the strait as a "theatre of war." Transit through Hormuz has significantly decreased due to Iran targeting vessels.

The UAE's foreign ministry condemned a "hostile Iranian attack" on an ADNOC tanker, and UKMTO reported a projecti