Tehran Rejects Bid To Share Hormuz

“Iran rejected a proposal to evenly divide control of the Strait of Hormuz.

 

Oman, which sits opposite Iran across the strait, suggested a temporary plan to establish even lanes of control, but Tehran demanded Tuesday that it take the lion's share of the waterway critical to the flow of the world's oil supply, one of its top diplomats said.

 

A lull in fighting between the U.S. and Iran since Friday had prompted a new push for mediation, which included a proposed 10-day ceasefire plan. But in a new escalation Tuesday evening, Iran launched a ballistic-missile attack on American forces in the Middle East, further complicating efforts to resolve the conflict.

 

Earlier, officials in mediating countries said they were incensed by Tehran's rejection of the Oman plan. Tehran will only move to the next stage of negotiations if Oman agrees to Iran's Hormuz plan, said Iran's deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi.

 

Oman had proposed an equal division of transit routes between the two states. Gharibabadi said that plan "doesn't address Iran's security concerns."

 

Tehran countered with a plan under which one direction of traffic would pass through solely Iranian waters and part of the opposite lane would also be Iranian, Gharibabadi told state television.

 

"The inbound shipping lane must be entirely under Iran's control, while part of the outbound lane may remain under Oman's control," he said. "If they accept this proposal, we will move on to the next stage."

 

In talks with Oman, Tehran insisted on retaining full control of the waterway because U.S. military supplies used to attack its territory transited the strait, an Iranian official said Monday. Iran sits on the northern side of the narrow waterway, while Oman controls the top of the point of land jutting out of the southern shore.

 

"The strait is an international waterway, and Iran cannot control or restrict transit through it," a U.S. official said Tuesday. Iran, the official said, "is overreaching with unreasonable demands."

 

Before the war, roughly 100 ships passed freely through the strait each day, without the payment of any fees.” [1]

 

1. World News: Tehran Rejects Bid To Share Hormuz. Faucon, Benoit; Said, Summer.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 29 July 2026: A6.