Qatar's prime minister will visit Tehran in an effort to relaunch diplomacy after the US and Iran traded recriminations over Washington's promise to increase economic pressure on Tehran by targeting its trade partners for sanctions. Qatar, a Gulf neighbour of Iran and a US ally, has served as a back-channel negotiator for the warring parties and played a direct role in securing the June ceasefire that briefly led to a cessation of hostilities. The visit comes as the war nears its sixth month with fighting largely paused but no diplomatic breakthrough in sight. The two sides remain at odds over control of the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for global oil supplies that Tehran has used as leverage. The memorandum of understanding broke down in part because of differences over the narrow waterway between Iran and Oman where one-fifth of the world's oil supplies passed before the war began on 28 February. The guns have gone mostly silent, as the US military's Central Command has not reported any attacks on Iran for nearly a month. Washington appears to be leaning more on economic pressure by announcing plans to cut Iran off from its trading partners with increased sanctions. Hormuz oil flows have fallen to a three-month low, with just five million barrels per day transiting on Monday, according to the latest ship-tracking data. Before the war, the strait carried roughly 20 million barrels per day of crude oil. Iran's Revolutionary Guards said yesterday that Iran and Oman had agreed how to share the waterway and its revenues, but a senior Iranian source later said the two countries were still working on the details of an agreement. Despite an aerial bombardment earlier in the war that severely diminished Iran's conventional forces, Tehran has maintained enough missile and drone capability to attack Gulf neighbours that house US military bases and disrupt oil tankers in the strait. The United Nations' International Maritime Organization has reported 70 incidents in the Strait of Hormuz since 28 February that have killed 19 seafarers. Thousands of others have died, mostly in Iran and Lebanon, since the US and Israel attacked Iran with the stated goals of denying Iran a nuclear weapon, helping Iranians topple their government, and destroying Iran's missile programme. Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani will discuss the continuation of Qatar's mediation efforts and other developments in the region during his visit to Tehran, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said. Qatar's Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on X that Sheikh Mohammed would also address freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the need to return to the status quo before 28 February, while also discussing with Iranian officials ways to "de-escalate tensions and create the conditions conducive to dialogue." The international waterway was open to free navigation before the war, but Iran has since clung to its control of the strait as leverage and a revenue source, seeking to charge ships a commission, which the US has opposed. "An agreement with Oman over the Strait of Hormuz has not been finalised," the senior Iranian source told Reuters, adding that the talks were continuing on the details of an accord. That seemed to contradict a statement by Brigadier General Hossein Mohebbi, a spokesperson for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, who said Iran and Oman had "reached results that are acceptable to both sides" on controlling the strait and its revenues. Mr Mohebbi said the strait would remain shut unless the US met Tehran's conditions under the interim ceasefire, or memorandum of understanding, that the two sides signed in June before it unravelled. Those conditions include an end to the US blockade on Iranian ports, compensation and removal of sanctions. Iran and Oman have held on-and-off talks for weeks about controlling traffic through the strait. Tehran and Washington have each tried to assert control over the channel, imposing separate blockades.
Qatar's prime minister will visit Tehran in an effort to relaunch diplomacy after the US and Iran traded recriminations over Washington's promise to increase economic pressure on Tehran by targeting its trade partners for sanctions. Qatar, a Gulf neighbour of Iran and a US ally, …
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António Guterres, UN Secretary-General "I condemn today's military escalation in the Middle East. The use of force by the United States & Israel against Iran, and the subsequent retaliation by Iran across the region, undermine international peace & security.
" Tedros Ghebreyesus, Director-General, World Health Organization (WHO) "I am deeply concerned about the current situation in the ...
Washington Institute fellows assess how Hezbollah, the Houthis, Iraq's Hashd, and other Iranian proxies and allies are responding to the war, as well as how the Trump administration and partner governments might counter the risk of terrorist attacks given Tehran's long track record of foreign plots.
Cryptocurrency traders are pricing in higher odds that the U.S.-Iran ceasefire will hold through October, even as lead mediator Qatar works to restart diplomacy between the two sides. ‘Return to the Path of Negotiations’ Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani is set to visit Tehran on Thursday to discuss the ongoing mediation efforts and other regional issues, Reuters reported.
Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on X that the Middle Eastern country is undertaking efforts “to encourage a return to the path of negotiations” between the U.S. and Iran. The spokesperson said Qatar’s priority is “to restore normal navigation” in the Strait of Hormuz, ensure global energy and food security and maintain the safety of supply chains.
No Diplomatic Breakthrough in Sight The U.S. has accused Tehran of violating the memorandum of understanding by attacking commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Washington also reimposed the naval blockade against Iranian ports. Although the fighting has ceased for nearly a month, the U.
S. has turned to economic sanctions to pressure Iran. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a new campaign earlier this week targeting the financial networks, companies and countries that help Iran generate revenue and bypass sanctions. Iran has termed the sanctions as “systemic bullying” accusing the U.
S. of “annihilating” international law. Polymarket Bets on Ceasefire Meanwhile, the betting crowd on Polygon (CRYPTO: POL)-based Polymarket currently assigns a 90% chance of the ceasefire continuing through Sept. 15, up from 48% a month ago. Similarly, the odds that the ceasefire holds through Sept.
30 rose to 83%, while the chance it lasts through Oct. 30 climbed to 75% Image via Shutterstock/ Below the Sky © 2026 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. To add Benzinga News as your preferred source on Google, click here.
Iran and Oman are still working on the details of an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz, a senior Iranian source said on Wednesday, after Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said the two countries had agreed how to share the waterway and its revenues. The elite force’s spokesperson, echoing Tehran’s official stance, also said the strait would not open unless the United States met Tehran’s conditions under an interim ceasefire agreement that was struck in June before unravelling.
Those conditions include an end to the US blockade on Iranian ports, compensation and removal of sanctions. Iran and Oman have held on-and-off talks for weeks about controlling traffic through the strait, which handled one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments before the war began in February.
Most shipping has since been shut down, driving global energy prices higher, as Tehran and Washington have tried to assert control over the channel, imposing separate blockades. “An agreement with Oman over the Strait of Hormuz has not been finalised,” the senior Iranian source said, adding that the talks were continuing on the details of an accord.
A spokesperson for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Iran and Oman had reached an agreement on their shares of the territory and revenues. “The Strait of Hormuz belongs to Iran and the country of Oman. We have been in negotiations with Oman for about a month, and we have reached results that are acceptable to both sides,” Hossein Mohebbi said in comments published by Iranian state media.
“In these negotiations, agreements have been reached regarding the share of each country in the waters of the Strait and the share of Iran and Oman in its revenues,” he added. It was not immediately clear at what stage of the negotiations the agreements had been reached.
Iran had said earlier this month that a deal on the strait was close. Following talks on Tuesday between Iran and Oman, Omani foreign minister Badr Albusaidi said he was “hopeful we will soon announce a temporary corridor for the Strait of Hormuz and practical arrangements to restore safe navigation”.
US president Donald Trump has warned Oman against co-operating with Iran, telling Fox News on August 17: “If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the shit out of them.” The IRGC accused the US of seeking to obstruct Iran’s negotiations with Oman and said this had caused an agreement to be delayed.
“If the United States stops obstructing and returns to the agreement, we can open the Strait of Hormuz within the framework of the agreement reached. If the United States does not accept our conditions, the Strait of Hormuz will not be opened under any circumstances,” Mr Mohebbi said.
Though active hostilities between the US and Iran have largely subsided in recent weeks, diplomatic efforts to reach a peace deal have stalled, and continuing attacks on ships mean passage through the Strait of Hormuz remains perilous. Iran announced a blacklist on Sunday of 45 ships in an apparent effort to stop ship-to-ship transfers used by Gulf energy producers to evade the Iranian blockade.
Some companies plan to stop using vessels added to the blacklist, sources said. In an effort to tighten pressure on Iran’s economy, the US has threatened to punish countries that continue to do business with Iran, but said it would not impose penalties immediately.
The sanctions did not feature Chinese financial institutions suspected of facilitating oil exports from Iran that the US blockade has cut. Iran denounced the US effort to isolate its economy as an act of “gross lawlessness”, expressing confidence that many countries would not join the pressure campaign.
Oil prices fell for a third day, dropping more than 1.5pc, following signs of renewed efforts to seek a mediated end to the war that began on February 28 with US and Israeli strikes on Iran. Secretary of state Marco Rubio told allies that the US did not expect to launch new strikes against Iran for now, and would instead focus on other means of pressure, Axios reported on Tuesday.
US public approval of the war has fallen to its lowest level since the conflict’s early days, and Mr Trump’s popularity is likewise at a record low ahead of congressional elections in November, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling. Thousands of people have died in the conflict, most of them in Iran and Lebanon, while the U.
S. and Israel have degraded much of Iran’s conventional military capacity. The exact state of its nuclear programme, which the US and Israel aim to dismantle, remains unknown. Iranian army spokesman brigadier general Mohammad Akrami-Nia said new equipment had been delivered to combat units and fighting against two technologically advanced militaries had provided Iran’s forces with significant battlefield experience, according to comments carried on Wednesday by Iran’s Mehr News.