TEHRAN -- Iran’s top security officials on 
Saturday made it unequivocally clear that the strategic Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until the United States fully accepts Tehran’s conditions and demonstrates genuine behavioral change. 
The Islamic Republic has rejected any notion that ongoing negotiations with Oman regarding a new shipping framework would automatically lead to the waterway’s reopening, emphasizing that the strait represents far more than an economic passage—it is a fundamental instrument of geopolitical power.
Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), outlined six specific conditions that Tehran views as critical before any consideration of reopening the strait. 
These include: the U.S. refraining from threatening or insulting Iran’s sacred beliefs, a permanent end to aggression against Iran and its regional allies, lifting the naval blockade and all sanctions, returning Iran’s frozen assets, and paying compensation for damages resulting from US-Israeli aggression. 
Zolghadr emphasized that the SNSC “will never back down, whether in war or in negotiations,” and that these conditions represent the demands of millions of Iranians who have taken to the streets in support of their government since the aggression began on February 28.
The current crisis stems from Washington’s violation of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), signed in June to end the American-Israeli aggression.
Under Article Five of the agreement, shipping through the Strait of Hormuz was expected to return to normal levels within one month. Iran implemented its obligations, easing restrictions and allowing transit to reach 60 percent of normal levels within two weeks. 
However, Iran maintains that Washington failed to uphold its end of the bargain and resumed airstrikes on the country, prompting Tehran to declare the strait closed once again.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed that while Iran and Oman are “very close” to reaching an agreement on a new legal framework for managing shipping through the strait, the full reopening depends on additional conditions—primarily the US compensating Iran for its violations of the Islamabad MoU. 
Araghchi stressed that Washington’s attempts to establish new shipping routes near Omani shores represent an unacceptable interference with Iran’s sovereign management of the waterway.
Brigadier General Hossein Mohebi, spokesman for the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), delivered a stark message on National Journalists’ Day: “The Strait of Hormuz is not merely an economic waterway for us; it is a component of geopolitical and strategic power.” He emphasized that the strait’s reopening is governed by Iran’s own mechanisms and conditions and “has nothing to do
 with the negotiations between Iran and Oman.”
Mohebi pointed to the changing dynamics of modern conflict, noting that “geography, after being pushed to the margins of military calculations for years, has returned forcefully to the heart of warfare.” 
The strategic chokepoint, responsible for a fifth of global oil demand and a third of the world’s fertilizer supply, has become a critical instrument in Iran’s resistance against US interventionism.
Brigadier General Mohammad Akraminia, Iran’s Army spokesman, declared that “an Iranian order is currently governing the strategic waterway” and that “this order is irreversible.” 
He warned that the United States “has no choice but to accept the existing situation; otherwise, it will incur costs far greater than those it has faced in the past.” 
This unwavering position reflects Iran’s determination to resist decades of U.S. interventionism, with Mohebi noting that over its 267-year history, the United States has intervened in 150 countries but has “failed to achieve any of its interventionist policies in the case of Iran.”
The U.S.-Israeli aggression against Iran and the subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz has triggered a global energy supply shock, driving up gas prices, worsening inflation, and raising alarms about oil reserves worldwide. 
The war has also disrupted the production of essential components like printed circuit boards, affecting smartphones, servers, and computer equipment.
Ali Akbar Velayati, senior advisor to the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, emphasized that foreign forces must leave West Asia, describing their military presence as “the main source of insecurity and instability.” 
He noted that regional countries possess the capacity to safeguard their own security without relying on foreign powers, urging greater cooperation among regional states.
On Saturday, a vessel linked to the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) was targeted attempting to transit the strait. ADNOC reported that 15 of its vessels have been attacked by missiles and drones since the war began, with three vessels targeted in the past week alone, resulting in one crew member’s death and injuries to 20 others.  
Iranian officials have made clear that any resolution to the Strait of Hormuz crisis must come on Tehran’s terms. 
The U.S. must accept Iran’s conditions, cease interference in regional affairs, and demonstrate genuine behavioral change before the strait can be reopened. 
As the global community watches with growing interest, Iran’s position remains unyielding: the Strait of Hormuz is not merely a commercial waterway but a vital component of Iran’s national security and strategic power.