Iran has set preconditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, demanding compensation for damage from the conflict and calling for broader changes to US policy, in a move that could complicate efforts to restart shipping through one of the world’s busiest maritime routes.

Tehran has imposed an effective blockade of the strait since the United States and Israel carried out strikes on Iran in late February. Iran has also attacked ships it accuses of trying to avoid its preferred routing and has called for tolls for passage, despite the strait having been free to transit before the war.

Preconditions tied to June accord

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said discussions with Oman on transit and management of the waterway were “approaching the final stages”. However, he said any reopening was “subject to other conditions and compensation for the violation” of a June memorandum.

Iran’s security chief, Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, set out a detailed list of demands on Saturday. Alongside calls for compensation for wartime damage, he said Iran wanted an end to what he described as “war and aggression against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen, and Iraq”.

According to remarks reported by Tasnim news agency, Zolghadr also demanded the lifting of a parallel US naval blockade of Iran, an end to sanctions, the release of frozen assets, and compensation tied to violations of the June agreement.

The comments come after attacks in the strait led to the collapse of an April ceasefire. Since then, mediators have urged both sides to return to the terms of the June memorandum.

Iranian Revolutionary Guards said the reopening of Hormuz had “nothing to do with the negotiations between Iran and Oman”. They added that the “enemy is forced to accept Iran’s conditions for the opening of the strait”.

Shipping risks and fresh accusations

Transit through Hormuz has dropped significantly. Iran has targeted vessels it accuses of skirting its preferred route through Iranian waters.

On Saturday, the United Arab Emirates condemned what it called a “hostile Iranian attack” on a tanker owned by ADNOC (Abu Dhabi National Oil Company) while it was transiting the strait. The UAE said a missile struck the tanker but that there were no casualties.

Later, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said a ship was hit by a projectile off Oman in the Strait of Hormuz and that a fire broke out but was extinguished with no casualties. UKMTO said it was unclear whether the incident referred to the same vessel.

On Friday, ADNOC said that since the war began, 15 of its vessels had been attacked in Hormuz, including three in the previous week alone.

Oman’s foreign ministry on Saturday condemned “repeated attacks on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz”, without naming Iran. It said talks on navigation arrangements were continuing in a “positive and constructive atmosphere” and urged against actions that could jeopardise progress.

The June framework described future arrangements for the strait as being worked out by Iran and Oman with other Gulf countries, in line with international law. International law generally prohibits tolling in such waterways.

Regional security talks widen

Separately, Turkey’s foreign minister said Egypt is expected to join a joint defence agreement between Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan aimed at stabilising the region.

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said that “at the next stage” Egypt would be included in the alliance, describing it as acting “as if we were alliance members”. He also said the agreement does not target a specific country, adding: “There is no common threat that we have put in writing,” according to the news agency.

A drone struck US assets at an Egyptian port on the Mediterranean last month, which was described as the first drone attack on Egyptian territory since the outbreak of the Iran war.

Pakistan’s foreign ministry said on Friday that under the pact an attack on any member would be treated as an attack on all, adding that it was intended to “strengthen collective deterrence”.

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9 August 2026

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The inability of the USA to forcibly open the Strait of Hormuz shows exactly how powerless they are.

A blustering bully that hasn't won a major conflict since 1945.

Oooh... I cannot see this stupid mess getting properly resolved any time soon. In fact I'm more balancing towards escalation rather than de-escalation.

It's always the winner that gets to set the terms.

Think about that, MAGA.

I expect Trump will come out with more threats to bomb Iran into submission. Best he just keeps his mouth shut.

This will end and the strait will open when Iran says it will the sooner Trump realises that the better.

I think Iran will want to keep it going until the midterms to cause Trump as much pain a possible.

It will also end with some sort of fee being paid to Iran & Oman for ships to pass through the strait.

In what universe could MAGA seriously claim that Trump’s withdrawal from the JCPOA and his subsequent war of choice with Iran has left the world in a better place?

In 2015, Iran was under strict nuclear limits and intrusive inspections. Today, the nuclear issue is more dangerous, the region less stable, and Americans are once more paying the price.

And the rest of the world is left to bear the cost of decisions it had no part in making and no power to influence.

He broke it, obviously lost control of the situation, and now Iran is in a position to set the terms. He made the world less safe and will expect the rest of us to help clean up his mess.

Maybe it’s time to take the keys nuclear codes away, from Grandpa.

I say we parachute the cartoon warrior president in armed only clad with his full diaper as a shield to defeat the Iranian hoards.what an effin farce of an administration just pathetic.

1 hour ago, Tug said:

I say we parachute the cartoon warrior president in armed only clad with his full diaper as a shield to defeat the Iranian hoards.what an effin farce of an administration just pathetic.

If he landed and then removed that diaper would not the Iranians surrender immediatly?

Iran’s move is a master class in weaponising geography. By tying reopening of Hormuz to compensation, sanctions relief, and wider US policy shifts, Tehran is effectively holding global shipping hostage despite Trump's posturing.

What was once guaranteed free passage through Hormuz has now been turned into a bargaining chip, courtesy of the strikes ordered by Trump and Netanyahu!

But, the demand list of: end of “war and aggression” in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen, Iraq, plus release of frozen assets, now goes far beyond maritime transit.

The real question now is whether the US and Israel treat this as extortion or negotiate to get oil flowing again. Either way, Iran has set the bar high, and the rest of the world suffers because of it.

OMG they've got some brass neck......decimated, obliterated, annihilated and destroyed........and making demands.

Do they not even know they lost this war months ago?

4 hours ago, Watawattana said:

Oooh... I cannot see this stupid mess getting properly resolved any time soon. In fact I'm more balancing towards escalation rather than de-escalation.

My own sense is Iran will just string this along until the Midterm elections. If the Democrats win both houses of Congress, Iran might agree to reopen the straight with China or Russia as its watchdog.

2 hours ago, Tug said:

I say we parachute the cartoon warrior president in armed only clad with his full diaper as a shield to defeat the Iranian hoards.what an effin farce of an administration just pathetic.

Don't forget his wig...

5 hours ago, DaddyWarbucks said:

The inability of the USA to forcibly open the Strait of Hormuz shows exactly how powerless they are.

A blustering bully that hasn't won a major conflict since 1945.

My father was a "blustering bully" who rode with Patton's third army through France, Germany and then into Austria to liberate Europe from Nazism. He would very much approve of your designating him a "bully." And the South Koreans are also very much happy for the American "bully" that liberated their country from the likes of communist North Korea:

Full text of Yoon's address at US Congress:

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/foreignaffairs/20230428/full-text-of-yoons-address-at-us-congress?utm_source=legacy_url&utm_medium=redirect&utm_campaign=news_manager_id

Thanks God for the American "bully."

mad mullahs have no fear for their continued existsnce ,theyre

begging to get their rs kicked to hell

1 hour ago, Screaming said:

My father was a "blustering bully" who rode with Patton's third army through France, Germany and then into Austria to liberate Europe from Nazism.

You must be 100 years if that was a true claim, or did your father join the army when he was 10 years old

4 hours ago, LosLobo said:

In what universe could MAGA seriously claim that Trump’s withdrawal from the JCPOA and his subsequent war of choice with Iran has left the world in a better place?

In 2015, Iran was under strict nuclear limits and intrusive inspections. Today, the nuclear issue is more dangerous, the region less stable, and Americans are once more paying the price.

And the rest of the world is left to bear the cost of decisions it had no part in making and no power to influence.

He broke it, obviously lost control of the situation, and now Iran is in a position to set the terms. He made the world less safe and will expect the rest of us to help clean up his mess.

Maybe it’s time to take the keys nuclear codes away, from Grandpa.

Trump has never been able to admit that Obama was/is way way way smarter than the don. He just had to come in and destroy what Obama had done with Iran which was working just fine . Oil was flowing and inspectors were in Iran constantly inspecting to insure no nuclear weapons.

Trump and his giant ego, look at me mr tough guy bone spur bully....watch how i will have Iran begging to lick my boots. Watch me fire or demote experts that have decades of experience dealing with Iran that no doubt warned in detail what would happen. Watch me get conned by Bibi because trump would rather trust russia and israel more than his own CIA.

What a total fool he is and now the entire world is paying the price. Oil is not flowing, inspectors all kicked out, thousands killed, US stockpile of weapons depleted, inflation soaring worldwiden and USA allies scrambling to find dependable allies. Congratulations to all who voted this moron into office not once but twice. Well done. Free kool aide.

7 hours ago, DaddyWarbucks said:

The inability of the USA to forcibly open the Strait of Hormuz shows exactly how powerless they are.

A blustering bully that hasn't won a major conflict since 1945.

Yep - The USA is running out of ammo, (and so are the EU/UK countries with the Ukraine!).

Basically, Iran has beaten the USA, same as Vietnam etc.....

58 minutes ago, CallumWK said:

You must be 100 years if that was a true claim, or did your father join the army when he was 10 years old

I'm 85 my father was in the Royal Navy before during & after WW2 so its quite possible.

46 minutes ago, pomchop said:

Trump has never been able to admit that Obama was/is way way way smarter than the don. He just had to come in and destroy what Obama had done with Iran which was working just fine . Oil was flowing and inspectors were in Iran constantly inspecting to insure no nuclear weapons.

Trump just couldn’t leave Obama’s legacy alone.......

A few major Obama-era policies that Trump reversed and the consequences.

1. JCPOA → Iran’s nuclear threat increased—and now war.

2. Pandemic playbook torn up → Thousands unnecessarily died.

3. Paris Agreement → U.S. climate industries, now China’s.

4. TPP → U.S. influence in Asia, now China’s.

5. Palestine two-state solution → Israel-Hamas war in 2023.

Obama has a permanent penthouse suite in Trump’s head.

5 hours ago, Tug said:

I say we parachute the cartoon warrior president in armed only clad with his full diaper as a shield to defeat the Iranian hoards.what an effin farce of an administration just pathetic.

The USA is the signatory to conventions renouncing both Chemical and Biological weapons.

I am pretty sure the very disturbing imagery of Trump, diapers and parachutes are covered by those conventions!

4 hours ago, CallumWK said:

You must be 100 years if that was a true claim, or did your father join the army when he was 10 years old

I'm 68 yo, youngest of 3

My father served in WW2, Royal Canadian Engineers

One of the worse humiliations in US history - a great idiot test to find out who they are and YOU know who you are.

11 hours ago, Screaming said:

My father was a "blustering bully" who rode with Patton's third army through France, Germany and then into Austria to liberate Europe from Nazism. He would very much approve of your designating him a "bully." And the South Koreans are also very much happy for the American "bully" that liberated their country from the likes of communist North Korea:

Full text of Yoon's address at US Congress:

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/foreignaffairs/20230428/full-text-of-yoons-address-at-us-congress?utm_source=legacy_url&utm_medium=redirect&utm_campaign=news_manager_id

Thanks God for the American "bully."

That isn’t the issue or a valid reason to attack another nation especially undercover of ongoing negotiations….furthermore WW2 was a coalition of allies with common cause.this debacle is the product of one immature New York City trustfund baby playing president…..do not conflate my disagreement as supporting Iran ….I don’t their government is a scourge on society in my view.Obviously this mess wasn’t thought through and this is the result.the fool didn’t take geography into account and it’s pretty obious that to give sound advice is akin to destroying your career……to succeed in an endeavor like this we need allies trump drove them away.the fool has also United a large nation against us.thanks magga tired of winning yet?

Also, the US waited 2.3 years before entering WWII and waited nearly 4 years before entering WWI

13 hours ago, Screaming said:

My father was a "blustering bully" who rode with Patton's third army through France, Germany and then into Austria to liberate Europe from Nazism. He would very much approve of your designating him a "bully." And the South Koreans are also very much happy for the American "bully" that liberated their country from the likes of communist North Korea:

Full text of Yoon's address at US Congress:

https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/foreignaffairs/20230428/full-text-of-yoons-address-at-us-congress?utm_source=legacy_url&utm_medium=redirect&utm_campaign=news_manager_id

Thanks God for the American "bully."

You forgot to mention Chile, Nicaragua, Mexico, Cuba, and most other S and C American countries that suffered from the USA's war on socialism. You forget about Greenland, Palestine, Vietnam, and now Iran. The bullying, hypocrisy and hatred never stops with the great usa

20 hours ago, webfact said:

Iran has set preconditions

Yes, they're the winner.

And by wasting arms for his war, Trump plays into Putin's and Xi's hands.

(The new formed "Mekka"-group takes the right decision: protection without US)

I’m sorry for Trump, he needed to understand what “Ayatollahs” are before the attack. 50 years of hell by these creatures that refused a free election and never give up free “oil” for their own pocket and putting the world in fire.

Europeans still need Ayatollahs in power for all business relations (if genuine people of Iran take over their country there will be no cheap oil an no IRGC business deals since they control all big industries). That is a big challenge for Trump.

The chief dimwit has been so spectacularly outwitted by Iran at every turn. The lack of planning is really starting to rear its ugly head and Trump seems to be totally bewildered and lost in the wilderness at this point. Iran is making life hard for him deliberately, and they really want him to get his ugly butt kicked in the midterms. Which will likely happen as he doesn't seem to have any way out of this ridiculous mess that he's created.

Letting a genocidal Israeli leader dictate policy to you is never smart.

19 hours ago, MIke B Bad said:

OMG they've got some brass neck......decimated, obliterated, annihilated and destroyed........and making demands.

Do they not even know they lost this war months ago?

I can't work out if your post is serious or sarcastic.

The way I see it, the world has lost 20% of its oil supply, and it is not coming back until Iran gives permission.

Losers don't make demands. People who see themselves as winners do.

16 hours ago, 3NUMBAS said:

mad mullahs have no fear for their continued existsnce ,theyre

begging to get their rs kicked to hell

Well if you probe the qualification of Iranian leadership with that of USA leadership you’d be surprised to learn that they seem more qualified both educationally and expertise in their field than their counterparts in USA. They’ve demonstrated their superiority by holding two nuclear powered countries over the barrel with a number of “can we talk please as we can’t take your punishment any more” coming from their attackers. So yeah it’s not the Iranians who’s ass is being kicked it’s rather USA, isreal, uae, Jordan, Kuwait etc.