USA said Thursday that he wants a final agreement with Iranbut not “at any price”, and warned of “total chaos” if Tehran imposes tolls to transit through the Strait of Hormuznear which a freighter was attacked.
Washington and Tehran talks began last week in Swiss after the signing on June 17 of a protocol of agreement, which seeks to end the conflict unleashed by Israeli-American bombings at the end of February.
The attack on the cargo ship on Thursday, with a projectile of unknown origin according to the British maritime security agency UKMTOcaused the suspension of the plan launched two days earlier to evacuate some 600 ships blocked in the Gulf since the beginning of the conflict, announced the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
The vessel, which was transiting outside this IMO device, was hit in the gulf of oman after having crossed Hormuz.
As the evacuation of sailors progresses, Tehran insists that its defensive capabilities are left out of any agreement. (06/23/26) Photo: AFP
Hours before, and as part of a tour of the United States’ allied countries in the Gulf that have been hard hit by the war in Middle Eastthe head of diplomacy, Marco Rubiosought to reassure them.
“Although we want an agreement, we do not want an agreement at any price,” he declared in Bahrain before their counterparts Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC).
He was referring to the situation in Hormuz, where Iran wants to impose “transit taxes” that did not exist before the war and Washington is opposed to it.
This passage, about 30 kilometers wide between Iran and Omanis strategic: 20% of world trade in goods transited through it. hydrocarbons before the war.
“The navigable waterways “International organizations do not belong to any State,” Rubio declared. Without this fundamental principle “the world would be plunged into total chaos,” he added.
Residents swim in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz while merchant ships remain in the area, amid tension over maritime transit. Photo: AP
The situation also appears to be tense between Iran and its neighbor Oman, located on the other side of the strait.
Muscat announced that no “transit commission” is planned in future agreements and mentioned the opening of a “maritime corridor temporary”, presented as a concerted initiative with the UN.
But the Guardians of the RevolutionIran’s ideological army, threatened to respond with “appropriate measures” to any attempt to cross without their authorization.
Beyond Hormuz, Gulf states want Tehran’s ballistic missile program and its support for armed groups in the Middle East to be part of the talks.
“Durable regional peace and security requires addressing all of the Iranian threats“, wrote the heads of GCC diplomacy in a statement. These issues do not appear in the protocol of agreement.
A woman participates in a religious ceremony in Tehran next to the burned remains of a tent, during the commemoration of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein (05/25/2026). Photo: AP
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“We want to ensure that no part of this agreement harms (…) the security, stability or prosperity of any of our partners in the Gulf region,” Rubio insisted.
The cessation of hostilities allowed the resumption of traffic in Hormuz: the monitoring platform Kpler He recorded 70 steps on Wednesday, a pace, however, twice as slow as in normal times.
With the attack on the cargo ship on Thursday, the prices of oil rose after falling to pre-war levels.
The agreement protocol opens the way to 60 days of negotiations with a view to a definitive agreement. According to Rubio, a technical meeting with the Iranian delegation is scheduled for June 29 or 30 in Switzerland.
In the United States, criticism grows over the concessions granted by the president donald trumpeager to end this unpopular war.
The White House requested the Congress additional funds worth almost $88 billion, primarily to replenish ammunition reserves.
Residents circulate between buildings damaged by previous Israeli bombings in Nabatiyeh, southern Lebanon, after the ceasefire with Hezbollah (06/25/2026). Photo: AP
Tehran defends its right to develop a nuclear program civil and has always denied wanting to manufacture a atomic bombas some Western countries fear.
In addition, Iran imposed that the front be included in the protocol of agreement Lebanonwhere Israel It faces the pro-Iranian Lebanese Islamist movement Hezbollah and has mobilized troops in the south.
Hezbollah He again accused Israel on Thursday of “flagrant violation” of the ceasefire after a drone strike left three dead. He israeli army claimed to have killed Hezbollah fighters.
The Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahureiterated on Thursday that the army would remain deployed “as long as necessary.”
Thursday’s attack brings the number of deaths since Tuesday in Israeli offensives to seven, while direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel are being held in Washington, the first in decades.
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