Iran has set a series of demands that the United States must meet before it will fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global oil and gas shipments.
Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, announced the conditions as Tehran continued talks with Oman on arrangements for reopening the strategic waterway.
Zolghadr said the United States must end its military actions against Iran and its regional allies, withdraw its forces from around Iran and lift its naval blockade.
He also demanded compensation for damage caused by the war and the release of frozen Iranian assets held abroad.
Iran has further demanded an end to U.S. sanctions and what it described as threats and insults against the country.
The demands threaten to delay efforts to restore normal shipping through the strait, through which about one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies normally pass.
Iran has previously warned that the waterway would remain closed until the United States ends what its Revolutionary Guards called its “acts of aggression.”
The latest development came as Iran and Oman moved closer to an agreement on new shipping lanes through the strait.
Reuters reported Sunday that Tehran said the agreement was in its “final stages,” but stressed that the United States must take action before the waterway can reopen.
The United States has demanded unrestricted commercial shipping through the strait, while Iran has insisted on maintaining control over traffic.
The standoff has disrupted energy supplies and raised concerns about global oil prices and wider economic effects if the waterway remains closed.
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