Ratcliffe hatte im März 2026 bereits ein Telefongespräch mit dem Chef des russischen Auslandsnachrichtendienstes SWR, Sergei Naryschkin, geführt. Das war der erste Kontakt auf diesem Level seit über zwei Jahren.
Ob es um die Ukraine, den Iran, Geheimdienstfragen oder einen möglichen Gefangenenaustausch geht, bleibt offen. Weder die CIA noch die Regierungen in Washington und Moskau kommentierten den Zweck.
“Our negotiations with Oman are ongoing. That is a completely separate matter. It is a technical issue concerning the designation of maritime routes in the Strait of Hormuz for the passage of ships.”
“The routes that existed previously are no longer functional, so a new route needs to be defined. For now, we are designing a temporary route, which can then, at a later stage, be turned into a final route.”
“We may reach an outcome soon, but I want to emphasise that these negotiations and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz are two separate issues. This is a technical negotiation concerning the designation of a maritime route.”
Iran’s FM Abbas Araghchi has discussed regional and international developments with his German counterpart, Johann Wadephul.
Their call came after Germany appeared to back Trump’s 15-point peace plan for Gaza, with a foreign ministry spokesperson saying the proposal could pave the way for the disarmament of Hamas.
Richard Weitz, an international security expert at the NATO Defense College, says the US is highly unlikely to accept Iran’s demand for compensation or any other conditions it has set for reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
“President Trump has explicitly excluded that [paying Iran compensation] and it wouldn’t have support in Congress to fund such a proposal,” Weitz told Al Jazeera.
“In fact, this whole list of conditions … Iran has reinserted is going to be a deal-breaker for the White House,” Weitz added.
Iran’s politburo-like body known as the Supreme National Security Council says the Strait of Hormuz will not open until the United States “corrects its behavior,” and issues drastic new demands that could shake up talks on a deal to manage the waterway and traffic on it.
Iran’s state broadcaster publishes the statement by the council’s secretary, Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, who is also a commander in the powerful Revolutionary Guard.
The US has not been providing direct briefings to Israel on discussions with Iran, leaving Tel Aviv authorities receiving much of the information indirectly, the Israeli Channel 12 reported.
The US has removed counterterrorism sanctions from two aircraft and three airlines with links to Iran‘s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) according to details posted to the US treasury department‘s website, Reuters reports.
In his weekly news conference, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said Qatar continues to call for de-escalation and dialogue.
He added that Qatar is in particular supporting Oman’s mediation efforts and is hopeful that an agreement will be reached in the coming hours or days.
Tehran: Iran‘s foreign ministry on Monday said the United States was not involved in recent talks with the Sultanate of Oman over the administration of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
„These talks have no connection with the United States. They are a bilateral matter between Iran and Oman, and they are continuing,“ said the ministry‘s spokesman, Esmaeil Baqaei, in a daily press briefing, adding that the waterway „remains closed“.
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Discussions between Iranian officials and their Omani counterparts over the last two days have been constructive, one Iranian official told CBS News on Sunday. Talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz are also moving in a positive direction, the official said.
The United States paused its attacks on Iran for a second straight day Sunday and Tehran said it had done so too, as efforts continued to bring the countries back to negotiations on an interim ceasefire deal largely undermined by recent exchanges of fire.
Published: 11:01 PM, Jul 11, 2026
MUSCAT: The Sultanate of Oman and the Islamic Republic of Iran held talks in Muscat on Saturday regarding navigation on the Strait of Hormuz to ensure its safety and freedom in light of recent developments and their repercussions.
The two sides agreed to carry on with the talks at both the technical and political levels to reach agreements in accordance with international law.
The discussions were held by Sayyid Badr bin Hamad al Busaidy, Foreign Minister, and Seyyed Abbas Araghchi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Tehran: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will travel to Oman on Saturday for talks on the Strait of Hormuz, state media said.
The visit „will be focused on the Strait of Hormuz and shipping safety“ and is „a continuation of the consultations that we started with Oman over the past one or two months,“ Iran‘s official IRNA news agency quoted foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei as saying.
In a statement to reporters outside the UN Security Council on Friday, Ambassador Amir Saeed Iravani said the United States has repeatedly breached the MoU, including through large-scale military attacks on Iranian islands and southern cities on July 7 and 8.
These renewed attacks, he said, constitute a “flagrant violation” of the UN Charter and a material breach of the MoU’s first clause, which commits the US to ceasing all military action against Iran.
Iranian officials privately told Trump advisers that they made a mistake in shooting at commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz, that the attacks stemmed from an „errant“ sect of hardliners who are trying to undermine negotiations, and that they want to keep talking, senior U.S. officials said on Friday.
The White House wants the regime to publicly acknowledge its mistake, which the Trump administration views as a violation of the ceasefire.
President Trump has directed his team — led by Vice President JD Vance, the president‘s son-in-law Jared Kushner, special envoy Steve Witkoff, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio — to continue negotiations.
The talks are to take place in Oman on Saturday.
Multiple officials told CNN there were preparations for potential US strikes if needed, but they are currently letting diplomacy take the lead.
The U.S. and Iran continue to engage in technical negotiations on nuclear issues, a U.S. official said Thursday, following two days of retaliatory strikes against Tehran this week.
„The United States is still committed to finding a resolution, and technical talks continue. Iran can never possess a nuclear weapon, the official said.
After that, an expanded talks session was convened with the participation of a number of ministers and senior officials from both sides. The discussions addressed various tracks of cooperation — including economic, investment and logistic domains — and explored opportunities for their development in a manner that supports integration, enhances the smooth flow of trade and opens broader horizons for practical partnership at both the bilateral and regional levels, as well as within the framework of Gulf cooperation among the GCC member states.
Tehran says it will establish a “communication channel” with Washington to report breaches of the memorandum of understanding (MoU), signed between them two weeks ago, to end the US-Israel war on Iran.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi made the announcement after indirect technical talks between Iran and the US were held in Qatar on Wednesday, as the two sides sought to advance their negotiations to ease tensions following recent exchanges of fire.
„Qatar and Pakistan mediators concluded separate meetings with the US and Iranian negotiators in Doha today, with positive progress made on issues related to the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, building on the outcomes of the Lake Lucerne Summit,“ Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson and adviser to the prime minister Dr Majed al-Ansari tweeted on X.
„The parties agreed to continue discussions over the coming period, with the next meeting to be scheduled at the earliest possible time following the funeral processions of the former Iranian Supreme Leader.“
The next phase of US-Iran talks in Doha depends on Washington implementing the memorandum of understanding it signed with Tehran, an analyst says.
Zohreh Kharazmi, a professor at the University of Tehran, told Al Jazeera she does not expect major progress on the Strait of Hormuz unless the terms of the MoU are carried out by the US.
“The articles of the MoU should be realised to have a step forward. The ball is in the United States’s court,” she said.
He said discussions centered on current developments concerning the Strait of Hormuz, as well as future mechanisms for managing the waterway within the framework of Article 5 of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding.
Oman‘s foreign minister Badr bin Hamad Albusaidi has said Muscat “does not support imposing transit fees” on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, while leaving the door open to charges for optional maritime services.
Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi has expressed support for Iran’s plan to impose “maritime service fees” on vessels crossing the Strait of Hormuz.
In an interview with Monte Carlo Doualiya, published by Oman’s Foreign Ministry on Monday, al-Busaidi reaffirmed Muscat’s commitment to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
He clarified that Oman opposes any tolls on transit passage itself. However, the minister drew a clear distinction between transit tolls and legitimate maritime, environmental, and navigational service fees, which can be discussed voluntarily with benefiting states and companies.
Exchange of fire: The US and Iran will “stand down for now,” and talks remain “on track”, two US officials have said, after both sides traded fire near the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s position is on the matter is currently unclear.
Talks with mediators are underway to reorganize the first round of technical negotiations between Washington and Tehran, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Friday.
Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to renew a ceasefire, according to multiple sources familiar with the situation.
The ceasefire was expected to start at 4 p.m. local time (9 a.m. ET) and was mediated by the US and Qatar, according to one person familiar. Another diplomatic source with knowledge of the situation said the deal was mediated by Qatar, the US and Iran.
The task now is not to reward Trump politically, nor to excuse the recklessness that produced this war. It is to prevent the war from returning. Democrats can condemn the decision to start it without sabotaging the agreement that ends it. They can hold Trump accountable without helping Netanyahu drag the United States back into conflict. The choice before them is not between opposing Trump and supporting peace. It is between learning from America’s endless wars and repeating them.
US President Donald Trump reposted Araghchi’s message.
Araghchi announced that significant progress had been made in efforts to finalize the memorandum of understanding reached between Tehran and Washington in Islamabad.
The Iranian foreign minister urged media outlets to avoid entering into speculation about the content of the understanding with the US before its official release.
Araghchi said all details will be shared with public in due course.