Iran said on Tuesday it was continuing negotiations with Oman on an interim arrangement for managing commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, but rejected a 50-50 control of the strait, insisting it must retain effective oversight over key parts of both shipping lanes to safeguard its national security even if lasting peace is achieved.
Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi told Iranian state television that Oman had proposed a 50-50 arrangement under which one country would oversee inbound shipping while the other managed outbound traffic.
According to Gharibabadi, Tehran rejected the proposal, arguing that it would not adequately address Iran’s security concerns.
“Our proposal is for one route to lie entirely within the territorial waters of the Islamic Republic of Iran, with part of the other route also passing through Iranian territorial waters, so that Iran can effectively exercise oversight over both inbound and outbound traffic,” he said.
The comments came after Oman proposed a joint regional mechanism to manage shipping through the strategic waterway and collect voluntary service fees from commercial vessels. According to a source from a Gulf country, the proposal has regional backing and is intended to prevent Iran from exercising sole control over the strait.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he held separate telephone conversations on Monday evening with his Omani and Saudi counterparts to discuss regional developments, diplomatic efforts to restore stability and security in the Strait of Hormuz.
Gharibabadi denied that Tehran had sought negotiations with Washington in the past two weeks, saying that the US had instead used Oman to convey that it would refrain from further military action against Iran while seeking talks.
US President Donald Trump, however, said on Tuesday that Washington was holding “good talks” with Iran and remained optimistic about reaching an agreement.
Trump also said Washington remained in a “very strong position” and reiterated that he preferred to avoid attacks on Iranian civilian infrastructure, including power plants and bridges.
Later on Tuesday, Trump hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House.
According to an Israeli source familiar with the discussions, the two leaders agreed that Iran must not be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon, although Washington and Jerusalem could differ over the methods used to achieve that objective.
The diplomatic activity coincided with a continued US military presence across West Asia.
CENTCOM said more than 20 US Navy warships were operating in the region in support of military missions, including enforcement of what it described as a “steel wall blockade” against Iran.
In a post on X, CENTCOM said that, as of July 28, US forces had redirected 18 commercial vessels, disabled two and boarded another two while enforcing the blockade.
