Potential Iran-Oman Hormuz deal won’t immediately reopen strait, source tells Iranian media

An understanding nearing finalization between Iran and Oman does not provide for the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz but establishes the basis on which it could reopen, an Iranian source told the semi-official Tasnim news agency on Saturday.

The source said the arrangement would be a step toward Iran exercising sovereignty over the strait and that its reopening depended entirely on the United States meeting Tehran’s conditions.

The comments came ahead of a meeting between Iran and Gulf states planned for Monday, which a senior Iranian official said would be a chance to discuss issues including the Strait of Hormuz, but is not expected to yield a signed agreement over the blockaded waterway.

The Iranian official, who discussed the plans on condition of anonymity, said Monday’s meeting was called at Oman’s initiative, and would provide a forum to discuss other regional issues as well as Hormuz.

According to the Iranian official, Iran still wants an agreement that would allow it to collect fees from ships that use the strait, which Oman rejects.

Iran has been negotiating for months with Oman, which controls the opposite bank of the strait, over a deal that would govern transport through it. Oman has long said its negotiations are supported by other Arab countries in the Gulf.

Tehran announced on Friday that it was planning to attend a meeting with Gulf countries in Oman on Monday. Oman has not officially announced the meeting and other regional states have so far remained silent. Bahrain said on Saturday it would not attend meetings with Iran, pointing to attacks on infrastructure across the Gulf while adding that security and stability in the region “cannot be preserved through a policy of appeasement.” It also called for Hormuz to be open without “discrimination, fees or permits.”

The Bahraini foreign ministry said it maintained its commitment to dialogue, but it “will not be a party to any collective meeting that includes Iran before the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries.”

Bahrain cut diplomatic ties with Iran in 2016 alongside Saudi Arabia during an earlier crisis between the regional rivals. While Riyadh restored ties in 2023, Manama is yet to do so.

Meanwhile, the United Kingdom Maritime ​Trade Operations reported early Sunday that a vessel was struck by an unknown projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz. It said the crew’s status, damage assessment and environmental impact were unknown.

Around a fifth of global oil supplies transited the strait before the United States and Israel attacked Iran in February, launching the war.

Global oil prices have surged over the past week after the United States and Iran both fired on tankers in the strait, and Iran’s Houthi allies in Yemen advanced near another crucial Middle East conduit for oil, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait on the opposite side of the Arabian Peninsula.