Iran-US Strait of Hormuz Negotiations and Shipping Dispute

Iran and the United States signed a memorandum of understanding on 18 June 2026, establishing a framework for negotiations aimed at resolving their longstanding disputes. The agreement set a 60-day period for the two sides to negotiate a final settlement covering Iran's nuclear programme, the lifting of sanctions, and the long-term status of the Strait of Hormuz.

Under the memorandum, Iran agreed to define the future administration of the Strait of Hormuz in dialogue with Oman and other Gulf States, in line with international law. However, substantive talks over Iran's nuclear programme were not required to start until after the lifting of the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, and Iran was required to use only 'its best endeavours' to achieve that lifting.

Iran and Oman held the first meeting of a Joint Hormuz Committee in Muscat, with Iran's deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi meeting Oman's minister of state for foreign affairs Abdulaziz al-Hinai. The two countries are pushing ahead with a plan to charge fees for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, despite US objections.

The Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas passed prior to the conflict, was effectively blockaded by Tehran on 28 February 2026, coinciding with US and Israeli airstrikes against Iran. The closure sent energy prices sharply higher and disrupted global supply chains for more than four months.

The central route through the Strait of Hormuz was closed because of mines, prompting proposals for alternative shipping lanes. Iran rejected a southern shipping route near the Omani coast developed with the UN's International Maritime Organization, which would have opened two lanes: one in Omani waters overseen by the US Joint Maritime Information Center, and one closer to Iran.

Tehran insists that ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz pass through a corridor near its own shores, and warned that attempts to bypass this preferred route would increase tensions and delay reopening. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it was taking measures to control traffic in the strait, warning that vessels violating those measures would be dealt with more firmly than before.

Center and center-left outlets reported Oman's proposed management system in detail, noting it would ensure littoral states receive income from commercial shipping through voluntary contributions or payments for specific navigational services, not tolls. Oman's foreign minister Badr al-Busaidi stated that Oman is not in favour of imposing tolls on passage through the Strait of Hormuz, noting that tolls are prohibited under international law while service fees are legal. Article 26 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea forbids payment for mere passage through an international strait, while Article 43 permits user states and strait states to cooperatively fund maritime services.

On Saturday, the US Navy's Joint Maritime Information Center announced a formal widened shipping route near the Omani coast, in direct challenge to Iran's assertion of sole navigational authority. Dozens of vessels travelled along the Omani-coast side of the waterway this week, contrary to Iran's preferred corridor.

An Iranian attack on a Singaporean ship travelling through the southern route occurred on Thursday, which led the International Maritime Organization to abandon the southern route plan. On Saturday, an Iranian drone attacked the M/T Kiku, a Panama-flagged crude oil tanker heading to Fujairah in the UAE.

US Central Command said it struck 10 Iranian military targets early Sunday in response to continued Iranian aggression against commercial shipping. Iran said it retaliated against US military strikes by targeting the US Fifth Fleet headquarters at Salman Port in Bahrain and the Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait; both Kuwait and Bahrain denounced the Iranian attacks.

US President Donald Trump issued warnings on Truth Social on Saturday that Iran would 'no longer exist' if the US were 'forced' to restart the war. Mohammad Mokhber, adviser to Iran's Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, wrote on X that as long as Tehran managed the strait, Washington's 'hegemonic dreams' in the region would not be realised.

Multiple US media outlets reported that fresh US-Iran talks were planned for Tuesday in Doha, but Tehran denied the reports. Trump stated on Truth Social that Iran had requested a meeting and it would take place in Doha. Iran's deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Iran's consultations with Qatar are ongoing as usual, but that reports about technical talks in Doha are unconfirmed and that the first round of technical talks will take place only when all conditions are met and all sides agree on a date and venue.

The Sultan of Oman met with French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday. France and the UK have a naval taskforce ready to police an agreement on freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.