• Pezeshkian insists now is ‘best time’ to end war as Iran ‘victorious’
• Tehran seeks US compensation, end to threats, lifting of sanctions
• Muscat terms talks ‘positive’; Araghchi sees deal ‘very close’
• UAE accuses Iran of hitting another tanker
• Trump’s top general seeks an ‘off-ramp’ from the war

DUBAI: As Iran has linked the reopening of Strait of Hormuz to the Unites States meeting commitments, not to any deal with Oman on new shipping arrangements, President Masoud Pezeshkian said he believed this was the best time for an agreement.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran and Oman were “very close” to agreement on a new shipping route through the strait but that reopening it depended on other conditions, including US compensation to Iran.

Tehran earlier on Saturday claimed an agreement with Oman on new shipping arrangements in the Strait of Hormuz was close but would not be enough to reopen the waterway. The claim comes at a time when the United Arab Emirates accused Iran of targeting a tanker belonging to its state-owned oil company in the strait, after an unknown projectile hit the vessel.

Oman said negotiations with Iran about the future administration of the strait were “positive and constructive”, but warned against repeated attacks on shipping.

Agreement between Iran and Oman over the strait is seen as vital to a wider deal to end the war that began with US and Israeli attacks on Iran on Feb 28 and led to Tehran establishing a chokehold over the major energy export route.

A US official said on Friday Washington anticipated an agreement soon between Iran and Oman, which sit on either side of the strait, so that normal oil traffic could resume.

The secretary of Iran’s top national security body, Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, listed other demands including ending US threats against Iran, stopping aggression against Iran and its Lebanese, Palestinian, Yemeni and Iraqi allies, lifting a blockade and sanctions on Iran and freeing Iranian assets.

Iran has imposed an effective blockade of the strait and wants to charge users for passage, repeatedly attacking ships it accuses of attempting to circumvent its preferred route. The US vehemently opposes any Iranian tolls in the strait, though a June deal struck by the warring parties does allow Tehran to hammer out arrangements for the “future administration” of Hormuz in dialogue with fellow coastal state Oman.

Araghchi said the previous shipping traffic separation scheme through the strait was no longer acceptable to Tehran and that Iran was discussing a temporary route with Oman while technical and legal issues surrounding a permanent route were resolved.

The Revolutionary Guards underscored the point, saying: “The opening of the Strait of Hormuz has its own mechanism and has nothing to do with the negotiations between Iran and Oman.”

“The enemy is forced to accept Iran’s conditions for the opening of the strait and to refrain from the interference that it is currently making in the negotiations, which have almost reached their end, between Iran, Oman and other countries,” the Guards said.

According to Iran’s Tasnim news agency, Guards spokesperson Hossein Mohebbi stressed that “whenever the United States accepts Iran’s conditions, the Strait of Hormuz will certainly be reopened”.

“There is cohesion, stren­gth and unity in the country, and as far as I know, Iran is considered victorious and powerful in this war,” Mr Pezeshkian said.

US officials debate risks

US Vice President J.D. Vance said a potential understanding with Iran could reopen the Strait of Hormuz to normal commercial traffic, while former defence secretary Mark Esper warned against giving Iran and Oman a role in administering the strategic waterway.

Vance told Fox News’ “Saturday in America” that Washington expected oil and gas shipments through the strait to return to pre-war levels, saying Iran had assured the US that it had no plans to impose tolls on shipping. “Our expectation is you’re going to see the same amount of oil and gas come out of the Gulf that you saw before the conflict started,” Vance said. “That is what the Iranians have told us that they are going to do.”

He cautioned, however, that Washington would judge Tehran by its actions rather than its assurances.

Meanwhile, Esper, appearing Friday on Fox News’ “America Reports”, warned against any arrangement that would give Iran and Oman control over traffic through the strait.

He said reports indicated that Tehran and Muscat were nearing an agreement that could divide passage through the waterway, with a northern route leading into the Persian Gulf and a southern route running along Oman’s coast.

“They may or may not charge a fee, but they would administer and control it in one way, shape or form, which would be a very bad outcome for us,” Esper said.

Amid the optimism and warning, CNN reported that Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Dan Caine has privately been seeking an “off-ramp” from the war, warning Trump administration officials that available military options may not be sufficient to achieve the president’s stated objectives.

Citing three sources familiar with the matter, CNN reported that Caine had discussed finding an “off-ramp” with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Vance and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.

With input from Anwar Iqbal

Published in Dawn, August 9th, 2026