Irakchi: Iran presented a seven-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to America
Abbas Irakchi, Iran's Foreign Minister, says Tehran has presented a "specific seven-day plan" to the United States through Qatar, and if Iran's desired conditions are met, the Strait of Hormuz can be reopened and normal maritime traffic resumed within seven days.
According to reports, this plan includes a seven-day cessation of hostilities, the release of Iran's blocked assets, the lifting of oil sanctions, and the end of the American blockade.
Mr. Irakchi told reporters at the media stakeout near the Security Council that Iran and the United States signed the "Islamabad Memorandum" on June 17, through the efforts of Pakistan and Qatar.
He said that based on the fifth paragraph of this memorandum, Iran committed to providing the necessary arrangements to facilitate the movement of ships to Yemen. Mr. Irakchi said that after signing this memorandum, Iran launched technical negotiations with Oman to implement this commitment and return maritime traffic to pre-war levels, claiming that within two weeks maritime traffic returned to about 60% of pre-war levels.
He said that subsequent unilateral actions by the United States and then its military action halted the implementation of the memorandum, adding that instead of using the dispute settlement mechanism provided in the memorandum, Washington resorted to military action.
Iran's Foreign Minister said that Tehran still "left the door of diplomacy open," but past negotiation attempts have caused "deep distrust" and Iran wants "valid guarantees" to resume negotiations so that, in his words, similar military action will not be repeated.
Mr. Irakchi said that Iran has clearly conveyed its position to America, and if the necessary conditions are met, the Strait of Hormuz can be reopened and normal maritime traffic resumed within seven days. He also said that Iran is committed to Yemen and safe navigation, but claimed that the insecurity in the Strait of Hormuz is a direct result of the actions of the United States and Israel. He said the Strait of Hormuz was open until February 28.
Mr. Irakchi also held regional countries responsible for the current situation, stating that they provided their territories, military bases, airspace, or logistical and intelligence infrastructure to the United States and Israel.
In another part of his speech, he called the claim that Iran is close to building a nuclear weapon a "big lie" and said Iran's nuclear program is peaceful.
Mr. Irakchi also claimed that more than 5,000 people were killed during the American and Israeli attacks on Iran, and called the ground attack on residential areas, schools, hospitals, and other civilian infrastructure a violation of international law.