Iran Says U.S. Agreement Isn’t Imminent, Nuclear Issue Not Under Discussion

Iran said it has reached a basic framework in talks with the U.S. to end the war, but cautioned that an agreement cannot yet be described as imminent. Tehran also reaffirmed that management of the Strait of Hormuz is a matter for coastal states, including Iran and Oman.

Walter Bloomberg reported on X on May 25 that an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said, “We have reached a framework, but no one can say an agreement between the United States and Iran is imminent.”

The spokesman said Iran is currently negotiating to end the war and that the nuclear issue is not being discussed at this stage. The remarks came shortly after speculation that Washington and Tehran were nearing a provisional agreement to halt the conflict in the Middle East.

On the Strait of Hormuz, Iran signaled a cautious stance. The spokesman said management of the strait belongs to the littoral states and added that a potential memorandum of understanding contains no specific provisions on how the waterway would be administered.

Earlier, a senior Iranian diplomat told Iran’s ISNA news agency that management of the Strait of Hormuz is an issue between Iran and Oman and that Tehran is in talks with Muscat on the matter. The diplomat said that if the U.S. fulfills commitments under a potential memorandum of understanding, Iran could discuss nuclear issues and its stockpile of highly enriched uranium during 60 days of negotiations in exchange for sanctions relief and the release of frozen assets.

Markets are treating developments in the Strait of Hormuz and the course of U.S.-Iran negotiations as key variables for global oil prices and appetite for risk assets. Iran’s rejection of claims that a deal is near leaves both negotiation hopes and uncertainty in play for the near term.