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Iran’s Parliament Speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has warned that the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz will never return to its pre-war status for the United States and Israel, signalling a possible long-term shift in control and arrangements governing the key shipping route.
In an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera on Wednesday, Ghalibaf said Iran and Oman had reached an understanding on managing the strategic waterway as part of Tehran’s seven-point proposal to end the eight-month-long war.
“There are no free waters (international waters) there. The 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea does not apply to this strait either,” he said, adding that Iran and Oman, as the two countries bordering the strait, would determine its rules under their respective laws.
Ghalibaf said Iran had sent a clear response to Washington on its seven-point conditions through Qatari mediation and was now awaiting an official US response.
“The ball is now in America’s court,” he said.
Iran’s demands include the lifting of the US naval blockade and sanctions, the release of frozen Iranian assets, an end to hostilities on all fronts and a clear declaration formally ending the war.
The Iranian chief negotiator said these demands had also been included in the Islamabad memorandum of understanding signed in June. He insisted that they must be addressed before formal negotiations with Washington could begin.
He said an agreement was possible if the United States stuck to previously discussed issues, avoided introducing additional demands and refrained from actions that could undermine trust.
According to Ghalibaf, the biggest obstacle to an agreement remains Iran’s lack of confidence in Washington.
He also claimed that during a visit to Moscow, US officials had asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to facilitate direct talks with Tehran.
Warning of the possibility of renewed US attacks on Iran, Ghalibaf said President Donald Trump would face another defeat if he launched fresh strikes and would also encounter political pressure from the new US Congress set to take office in January.
Ghalibaf said Iran did not want to remain in an uncertain state of “neither war nor peace”. Instead, the country was determined to build sustainable deterrence capabilities, including strengthening its military capacity.
The Iranian leader also commented on the ongoing conflict in Yemen between the internationally recognised government, backed by Saudi Arabia, and Houthi rebels.
He said neither side should intervene in the conflict, but added that Tehran would help facilitate a resolution if both the Yemeni government and Saudi Arabia requested its assistance.
Last October, Iran offered to arrange talks between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi movement following a series of deadly attacks in Saudi Arabia.
Source : Al Jazeera