The new US deal for Iran: Hormuz will open - and pressure on Tehran will decrease
According to a report in "Aram News", Washington has offered Tehran a monthly outline: opening the Strait of Hormuz to free navigation without fees in exchange for easing the blockade, releasing funds, or easing sanctions. Pakistan is mediating in an attempt to turn the proposal into a temporary arrangement.
The United States has conveyed to Iran a new proposal for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to regular commercial shipping without the collection of transit fees, in exchange for a gradual easing of economic and maritime pressure on Tehran, the Emirati website "Aram News" reported today, citing diplomatic sources familiar with the contacts between Washington and Tehran. According to the report, Pakistan is currently working to convey the outline to the Iranians and to examine whether it can be turned into a basis for a temporary arrangement.
According to the sources, the American proposal is based on a monthly mechanism. Iran will commit to allowing free and safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, without fees and without additional restrictions, and in return, the United States will lift the blockade on Iran's coast for one month. The arrangement will be renewable each month. In parallel, Washington will release at each stage a portion of the Iranian funds frozen abroad, in an amount to be determined in negotiations, or will grant a certain easing of sanctions.
The sources explained that this is an attempt to bypass two central disputes that are delaying a broader settlement. Washington strongly opposes the Iranian demand to collect payment from ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz, while Tehran refuses to return maritime traffic to normal as long as the United States continues the blockade on its coasts. A diplomatic source told "Aram News" that the goal of the proposal is effectively to "break the link between fees and the blockade."
According to the report, the American proposal is separate at this stage from the talks that Iran is holding with the Sultanate of Oman regarding a more permanent arrangement in the strait. The outline being conveyed through Pakistan is intended to serve as a temporary solution until Tehran and Muscat manage to reach a broad agreement regarding the management of shipping. The sources estimated that if the temporary outline is implemented, it may also influence the final formula that will be formulated between Iran and Oman.
As part of the diplomatic effort, Pakistan invited Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf for a visit to Islamabad. "Aram News" reported that the visit is intended to be used to discuss the technical details and the schedule of the proposal. The Pakistani Foreign Ministry confirmed last week that the Pakistani Foreign Minister had invited Araghchi to visit the country, and that Islamabad continues to work to resolve the crisis surrounding the Strait of Hormuz.
A source in the National Council of Resistance of Iran told the site that the Pakistani involvement gives Tehran an additional political channel and allows it to present a possible compromise as a result of regional mediation and not as a surrender to American pressure. On the other hand, Professor Walid Safi from the Lebanese University estimated that Pakistan is trying to create a fast and gradual track that could begin with freedom of navigation and regular energy supply, and subsequently lead to broader direct negotiations between the United States and Iran.
According to "Aram News", agreement has not yet been reached on the amount of funds to be released each month, on the scope of the easing of sanctions, or on the duration of the arrangement. Even the visit of the Iranian officials to Pakistan has not yet been finalized. However, the very presentation of the outline points to a new attempt to create a mechanism of reciprocal steps, in which each month of free navigation in the Strait of Hormuz will be met with a defined American easing.
