Iran says it could reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days if the United States meets its demands. According to Euronews, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei outlined the position on 2 November. The statement is a conditional proposal from Tehran, not an announcement of an agreement or confirmation that shipping has resumed.
Speaking at Monday’s briefing, Baghaei said Iran and the US were exchanging messages through mediators. He made further steps dependent on Washington accepting Iran’s demands and presented the reduction in the proposed reopening period from seven days to two as a gesture of goodwill. Euronews reports that the earlier proposal was passed to the Americans through Qatar in September.
What is Tehran demanding?
The conditions listed by Euronews include an end to the war on all fronts, the unfreezing of Iranian assets abroad, the lifting of sanctions on the oil sector and an end to the US naval blockade of Iranian ports. The proposed two-day timeframe is therefore tied to broader concessions that Iran is seeking from Washington.
Foreign minister Abbas Araghchi set out separate requirements. According to Euronews, he told Al Jazeera in an interview that these included acceptance of a new transit route through the strait agreed by Iran and Oman, a reduction in US troop numbers in the region and the lifting of sanctions imposed since August.
The Euronews report does not confirm that the United States has accepted these conditions or that the two sides have reached an agreement. The two days should therefore be understood as the timeframe Iran says it could meet once its demands are fulfilled, rather than a countdown already under way. The statement alone also does not establish that shipping conditions are safe along the entire route.
