Tehran (TDI): Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and his Omani counterpart, Badr Albusaidi, discussed regional developments and diplomatic efforts to promote peace and stability during a telephone conversation on Thursday, as tensions continued to escalate over maritime security in the Strait of Hormuz.
According to the Iranian government, the two ministers exchanged views on the regional situation and ongoing diplomatic initiatives aimed at preventing further escalation.
The conversation came amid a US naval blockade and growing tensions over access to the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most strategically important maritime routes. Qatar has continued mediation efforts between Washington and Tehran to ease the confrontation.
Located between Iran and Oman, the waterway serves as a critical passage for international energy supplies, carrying substantial volumes of oil and gas exports from Gulf countries to global markets.
Iran said on Monday that it remained in contact with the United States through intermediaries, but maintained that reopening the strait depended on Washington lifting its blockade.
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Separately, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said an oil tanker travelling through what it described as an unauthorized and unsafe route east of the Strait of Hormuz struck a naval mine on Thursday morning, triggering a fire and forcing the vessel to stop.
In an earlier statement carried by the official IRNA news agency, the IRGC said a large oil tanker had struck a mine on Wednesday night while attempting to navigate an unauthorized route south of the strait.
Read More: Iran, Oman Discuss Temporary Navigation Corridor in Strait of Hormuz
The vessel caught fire and was forced to halt, according to the statement. The IRGC also reported a separate incident involving another supertanker that caught fire while leaving the designated route in the eastern part of the waterway. A tugboat approaching the vessel to assist with firefighting operations also caught fire, it added.
The claims have not been independently verified, and further details about the vessels, their operators and the extent of the damage were not immediately available.
