Iran says no talks with US while interim deal is violated

CAIRO – 9 August 2026: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday that Iran is not engaged in direct talks with the United States and will not enter negotiations as long as Washington violates an interim agreement reached in June, Reuters reported.

Araghchi said messages are instead being exchanged between Tehran and Washington through intermediaries, without elaborating on the content of the communications.

He also reiterated that an agreement between Iran and Oman concerning the Strait of Hormuz is in its “final stages,” while clarifying that the deal will not lead to the strategic waterway being reopened at present.

Mohammad Bagher Zolqadr, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said in a message reported by Tasnim news agency on Saturday that the strait will not be reopened until Washington “corrects its behavior.”

Zolqadr outlined six measures he said the United States must take to meet that condition, including refraining from threatening Iran or violating its sanctities in any form.

He stressed that the US must permanently end the war against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen and Iraq, lift the maritime blockade, and withdraw US naval and air forces from areas surrounding Iran.

Financial demands include fully compensating Iran for damage caused by “the two wars of aggression and imposition,” lifting sanctions, and immediately releasing frozen or seized Iranian assets.