Hormuz Strait will ‘never return’ to pre-war status, Iran’s Ghalibaf says

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s parliament speaker and top negotiator, has told Al Jazeera that the Strait of Hormuz will “never return” to its status prior to the US-Israel war on Iran.

In an exclusive interview published on Wednesday, Ghalibaf said Iran and Oman reached an understanding to oversee the critical waterway as part of Tehran’s seven-point proposal to end the eight-month conflict.

“There are no ‘free waters’ [international waters] there, and the 1982 [UN Convention on the Law of the Sea] does not apply to the strait … The regulations within the Strait of Hormuz are governed by the laws of the two littoral states that border it,” he said.

Seven conditions

Ghalibaf said Tehran provided a clear response to the US through a Qatari mediator that included its seven conditions for peace talks, adding that Iran is waiting for an official response.

“The ball is now in the American court,” he said.

Iran’s conditions, as outlined by the chief negotiator, include lifting the US-imposed naval blockade and sanctions, the release of Iranian frozen funds, ending fighting on all fronts, and an explicit announcement of an end to the war.

He said these demands were part of the Islamabad memorandum of understanding signed in June and their implementation was necessary before entering negotiations with the US.

“If America limits itself to what has been agreed upon without making excessive demands or engaging in behaviour that breeds distrust, then, naturally, reaching an agreement is possible,” he said.

“What stands in the way of an agreement is our lack of trust in the United States.”

Renewed conflict

Ghalibaf said US officials asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to mediate direct negotiations with Tehran during a visit to Moscow.

He warned against new US attacks against Iran, saying that US President Donald Trump will face another defeat and political pressure from the new Congress that takes office in January.

Iran is determined to move beyond a state of “no war and no peace”, he said, urging a sustainable deterrent capability, including military capabilities.

Yemen mediation

On the ongoing fighting in Yemen between the Saudi-backed internationally recognised government forces and the Houthis, an armed group also known as Ansar Allah (Arabic for “Supporters of God”), Ghalibaf said that “no one should interfere” in it.

“If both the government in Yemen and Saudi Arabia were to ask for our help, we would certainly offer our assistance to help resolve their conflict,” he said.

Iran has previously offered to facilitate talks between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi group in October following a series of deadly attacks on the kingdom.