TEHRAN, Iran – October 4, 2026 (STL.News) Iran is refusing to reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the United States satisfies seven conditions tied to an earlier agreement between Washington and Tehran, hardening its public position as negotiations continue over one of the world’s most strategically important waterways.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who has emerged as Tehran’s top negotiator, said Sunday that Iran’s position was firm: the strait would remain closed until the conditions connected to the June Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding are met.
The declaration comes days after Iran received a U.S. response through Qatari intermediaries to Tehran’s latest diplomatic proposal.
Iran presented a plan during the United Nations General Assembly that it says could restore normal maritime passage through the Strait of Hormuz within seven days if Washington takes the required steps. Qatar has been acting as an intermediary between the two governments.
The latest statements indicate that Tehran is not backing away from those demands.
Qalibaf said Washington must recognize that the period of prolonging negotiations and imposing unilateral demands has ended.
What Iran is demanding
Iranian officials refer to seven conditions, but the complete current seven-point list has not been publicly detailed in the reporting reviewed by STL.News.
That distinction is important.
Reuters previously reported that Iran’s latest proposal includes an end to hostilities involving Iran and Lebanon, the release of billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets, an end to sanctions on Iranian oil and the lifting of the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports. In return, Iran would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume negotiations over its nuclear program.
Those demands overlap with provisions contained in the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding reached in June.
The published memorandum called for an end to military operations, respect for the sovereignty of both countries, negotiations toward a final agreement, and removal of the U.S. naval blockade. It also called for Iran to facilitate safe commercial passage through Hormuz.
The memorandum also included broader economic and diplomatic provisions, including sanctions relief and a proposed reconstruction and economic-development framework for Iran.
The White House publicly described the June agreement at the time as providing for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
The agreement subsequently unraveled.
Reuters reported in August that Qalibaf identified several U.S. obligations Iran considered necessary before normal conditions could return, including lifting the blockade of Iranian ports, removing oil sanctions, releasing frozen Iranian assets and ending military threats and operations.
Nuclear negotiations emerge as sticking point
A significant disagreement now appears to involve the scope and sequencing of negotiations.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Sunday that U.S. proposals continued to emphasize the nuclear issue, while Tehran wants the immediate negotiations centered on restoring security and maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
Baghaei also denied reports that Iran had offered inspections of its nuclear facilities by the International Atomic Energy Agency in exchange for sanctions relief. He said Tehran had not entered nuclear negotiations with Washington during the current discussions.
That does not mean the nuclear issue has disappeared from the broader negotiations.
An official briefed on the diplomatic process previously told Reuters that the proposal being circulated envisioned a seven-day confidence-building period leading toward an enhanced version of the June memorandum, including steps concerning Iran’s nuclear program.
According to that account, a major disagreement concerns the order in which each side would fulfill its commitments, rather than necessarily disagreement over every component of a potential settlement.
That sequencing problem is crucial. Neither Washington nor Tehran wants to surrender its principal leverage before receiving concessions from the other side.
Iran also warns against renewed military action
The diplomatic dispute is unfolding alongside renewed military warnings from Tehran.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told foreign ambassadors and diplomats Sunday that Tehran hoped the United States would pursue diplomacy but said Iran was prepared if Washington returned to military action.
Araqchi said Iran was now better prepared to defend itself if military operations resumed.
Separately, Iranian Army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia said Iran intends to increase the range of its missiles after drawing lessons from the conflict with the United States.
Qalibaf likewise presented military pressure and diplomacy as tools Iran could pursue simultaneously, saying Tehran was prepared to both fight and negotiate.
The rhetoric adds another layer of risk to already fragile negotiations.
Why the Strait of Hormuz matters
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most important energy chokepoints.
Before the current conflict severely disrupted maritime traffic, approximately one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows moved through the waterway, according to Reuters.
U.S. Energy Information Administration data demonstrate the scale of the disruption.
Total oil flows through Hormuz averaged about 21.6 million barrels per day during the fourth quarter of 2025. That fell to about 14.9 million barrels per day in the first quarter of 2026 and to just 4.9 million barrels per day in the second quarter, according to the EIA.
LNG movements through the strait similarly fell from approximately 10.5 billion cubic feet per day in the fourth quarter of 2025 to 0.8 billion cubic feet per day during the second quarter of 2026.
Historically, much of the energy moving through Hormuz has been destined for Asian markets. EIA data show that about 20% of worldwide LNG trade passed through Hormuz in 2024, primarily involving Qatari exports.
That makes the outcome of the U.S.-Iran negotiations important far beyond the Middle East.
Continued disruption can affect crude-oil and fuel prices, tanker availability, marine insurance, transportation expenses and ultimately inflation across the global economy.
Oil markets remain under pressure
Energy markets are already reflecting the conflict’s consequences.
Benchmark Brent crude traded above $100 per barrel on Sunday as major OPEC+ producers agreed to maintain current production levels for November. Meanwhile, the Group of Seven has announced plans to release 100 million barrels of oil and petroleum products to ease supply pressures.
The situation around Hormuz also remains unstable despite efforts to move more oil through the region.
The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that shipping had begun recovering toward prewar levels before another series of attacks around the strait threatened that progress. The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations had reported seven strikes on vessels around the waterway since Sept. 28.
The combination of military danger and unresolved diplomacy means restoration of normal shipping remains uncertain.
What happens next
For now, the diplomatic channel remains open.
Iran has received Washington’s response through Qatar, and Tehran has communicated its general reaction through intermediaries, although Iranian officials say it still needs to deliver additional points to the United States.
The emerging dispute is therefore more complicated than a simple rejection of negotiations.
Iran says it can reopen Hormuz quickly if Washington meets the required conditions. The United States has continued engaging indirectly through mediators. But the two governments remain divided over what happens first and over how quickly the broader nuclear dispute should become part of the negotiations.
Until that impasse is resolved, Tehran’s position is explicit: the Strait of Hormuz will not fully reopen on U.S. terms alone.
With one of the world’s most important energy corridors caught in the dispute, the consequences extend from Washington and Tehran to oil markets, shipping companies, manufacturers, and consumers worldwide.
This report is based on statements from Iranian officials, Reuters reporting, the published Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, White House material, and U.S. Energy Information Administration data. Diplomatic and military developments remain fluid.
Read World News at STL.News
