Tehran: Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said that negotiations between Iran and Oman on the Strait of Hormuz are in their final stages, the official news agency IRNA reported.
Araghchi said on Sunday during a cabinet meeting that the negotiations have progressed and are on the path of being finalised.
Elaborating on the Iran-Oman talks in an interview with state-run IRIB TV on Sunday, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei stressed that reaching an agreement between the two countries is not related to the waterway's reopening or continued closure, reports Xinhua news agency.
Baghaei said Iran and Oman are working to designate a "new route" in the strait within a traffic separation scheme format that can ensure both sides' sovereign rights as well as Iran's national interests and security.
Earlier, Iran's Acting Defense Minister Seyed Majid Ebn Al-Reza said Sunday that Tehran perceives every "enemy" threat as "real and noteworthy," rejecting any characterization of them as mere psychological warfare.
"We will neither be surprised nor remain passive. We use threats as a basis to increase our preparedness, strengthen our deterrence, and develop our power," Al-Reza wrote on social media platform X after US President Donald Trump said earlier that he had agreed to hold off fresh attacks against Iran.
Tehran tightened its grip on the strait after the United States and Israel launched joint strikes against Iran on February 28.
The US military launched multiple waves of strikes against Iranian targets last month, saying they were in response to Iranian attacks on vessels in the strait and aimed at "degrading Iran's ability to threaten commercial shipping."
Iran responded with missile and drone attacks targeting US military bases and facilities in the region.
--IANS
