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Iran and Oman reaffirmed their support for toll-free commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, highlighting a key provision of the recently signed Iran-U.S. memorandum of understanding (MoU) as the two neighbors held talks in Muscat on the future management of the strategic waterway.
Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi announced the position after meeting Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who arrived in Oman following negotiations with U.S. officials in Switzerland.
The discussions focused on the Iran-U.S. agreement, particularly provisions concerning the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most important maritime trade routes. "We affirmed the commitment to international law and toll-free safe passage," Albusaidi wrote on X.
Ghalibaf and Araghchi traveled to Muscat on Monday to discuss new arrangements concerning the management of the Strait of Hormuz.
Oman's official news agency reported that both sides stressed the importance of using the current diplomatic opening to support peace efforts, encourage de-escalation and strengthen regional stability in line with international law and the principles of good neighborliness.
The two countries also underscored the need to preserve regional security and safeguard navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and other international waterways.
The Muscat meetings followed 18 hours of diplomatic talks in Switzerland under Qatari and Pakistani mediation on implementing the recently signed agreement between Tehran and Washington.
According to Iran's state news agency IRNA, Ghalibaf is also expected to meet Omani Sultan Haitham bin Tariq during the visit to discuss bilateral cooperation and regional coordination.
The talks came days after Washington and Tehran remotely signed an MoU that launched a 60-day negotiating period aimed at resolving disputes over Iran's nuclear program, enriched uranium stockpile and other outstanding issues.
The agreement includes a commitment to ensure safe passage for commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, alongside provisions calling for an immediate and permanent end to military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon, and the removal of the U.S. naval blockade on Iran.
Momentum behind the accord continued on Sunday when mediators Qatar and Pakistan announced that participants in the negotiations in Switzerland had agreed to establish a de-confliction cell involving the United States, Iran and Lebanon. The mechanism is intended to help uphold the cessation of military operations in Lebanon under the Islamabad MoU.
During the early stages of the conflict, Iran attempted to take full control of the strait and introduce a tolling system under which vessels seeking safe passage would pay millions of dollars in fees.
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