Iran Says Strait of Hormuz Stays Shut Until US Meets Deal Terms

DUBAI —

The Strait of Hormuz will stay closed until the United States meets the terms of an interim deal it signed with Iran in June, Iran's top negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, told parliament in comments carried by state media on Tuesday, August 18, 2026.

Qalibaf said the conditions include lifting the US naval blockade of Iranian ports, ending oil sanctions, releasing Iran's frozen assets abroad, and stopping military threats and operations against the country.

A Deal That Fell Apart

The memorandum of understanding was signed on June 17 but collapsed quickly in a dispute over who controls the strait, the narrow passage between Iran and Oman that carried a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas before the war. President Trump declared the deal "over" on July 7, and Iran's foreign ministry called it "suspended" a week later. The agreement had given both sides up to 60 days to negotiate a broader settlement covering Iran's nuclear program.

Trump has also threatened Oman, which has been mediating separately with Iran over safe passage through the strait. In a Fox News interview reported by Euronews, Trump said the US would "bomb the s--- out of" Oman if it "gets in the way" of talks with Iran. Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, said Monday that Tehran and Oman had reached an understanding on a "navigation route map" for the strait but that talks were continuing, according to Iran's Fars news agency, as reported by Euronews.

Rising Danger at Sea

The dispute is playing out against a more dangerous backdrop. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency said a vessel was struck by an unknown projectile early Tuesday while crossing the strait, damaging its engine room and causing a crew casualty, Al Jazeera reported. The Omani coast guard was assisting the crew, and UKMTO said it was still investigating who or what was responsible.

Daily crossings through the strait have fallen into the single digits, down from more than 130 a day before the war began in February, according to Al Jazeera. A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday that Iran now plans to take a "fully offensive" posture given the stalled diplomacy.

Iran has also said it wants to charge ships for passage through the strait. Fortune reported that Tehran is seeking a fee of five to seven percent per barrel of oil, which could bring in close to $20 billion a year, though analysts told the magazine such a high charge is unlikely to survive negotiations. Michelle Brouhard of the energy intelligence firm Kpler told Fortune the old idea of free passage on the high seas is now "dead," and that other chokepoints, including the Strait of Malacca and the Strait of Gibraltar, could face similar pressure to charge tolls.