Iran says Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until seven conditions are met
Iran's lead negotiator, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said the Strait of Hormuz will not be opened until seven conditions based on the Islamabad memorandum of understanding signed by the US and Iran in June are realised. Tehran has repeatedly demanded an end to the fighting, the lifting of a US naval blockade, the release of frozen assets and relief from sanctions, and Mr Ghalibaf said the US had sent proposals through intermediaries that contradicted its leaders' public statements. A source in Tehran told The National that Iran was preparing for a major round of fighting while the door to diplomacy remained open.
Why it matters: The standoff bears directly on the briefing's energy security theme, because the Strait of Hormuz is the chokepoint through which Gulf oil and gas exports pass.