Iran and Oman are on the verge of reaching an agreement on a new framework for commercial shipping through The Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important maritime routes for energy transport. However, this will not automatically mean the reopening of this strategically important passage, said Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Garibabadi.
In an interview with Iran's state news agency IRNA, Garibabadi said that negotiations between Tehran and Muscat have been going on for more than three weeks and that an agreement in principle has been reached on new routes for inbound and outbound maritime traffic.
The talks, he explains, included technical issues, security and sovereignty interests of Iran and Oman, as well as the formation of a joint coordination center that would manage maritime traffic and collect information from ships.
The proposed plan involves the closure of temporary shipping routes near the Iranian island of Larak and through the territorial waters of Oman. Unlike the previous system, which for decades directed commercial traffic through Omani waters, part of the new incoming and outgoing corridors would pass through the territorial waters of Iran.
Photo: (AP Photo/Ebrahim NorooziWar tensions in the Strait of Hormuz
New navigation mode
Garibabadi stated that the new navigation regime could be implemented in the initial period of two to four months, or longer, but that for its implementation a special decision of the highest state leadership of Iran is necessary.
"This understanding in itself does not mean that the Strait of Hormuz will be reopened," he said, adding that it would depend on certain conditions being met.
The key concerns the United States, which Tehran accuses of re-establishing a naval blockade, continuing hostilities and reinstating sanctions. On the other hand, Washington claims to have renewed military strikes after Iran opened fire on vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
The negotiations between Iran and Oman are considered extremely important, because their successful conclusion could pave the way for the complete restoration of commercial navigation through one of the most important energy corridors in the world.
Photo: Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Zachary Pearson/US Navy via AP, FileThe Strait of Hormuz
A tanker was hit during the negotiations
And while the negotiations are underway, a ship was apparently hit again in the Strait of Hormuz, writes the German "Spiegel".
"The captain of the tanker reported that he heard two explosions while sailing in the Strait of Hormuz," the British maritime agency UKMTO announced on the X social network. The incident happened in the night between Wednesday and Thursday, about 15 kilometers from the coast of Oman. According to available information, the crew is safe, and the tanker has no major damage.
At the same time, Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said they launched a missile attack on a Saudi oil tanker off the coast of the Red Sea port city of Yanbu and another attack on a Saudi oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden.
Saudi Arabia has not yet confirmed the attacks, the "Times of Israel" reports. The Houthis imposed a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea last month in response to what they described as the "Saudi siege of Yemen".
Source: CNN / Spiegel
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