Iran Guards rule out Hormuz reopening without US meeting Tehran's demands

TEHRAN

A woman walks past a mural depicting Iran's late supreme leader Ali Khamenei at Valiasr Square in central Tehran on Aug. 8, 2026. (AFP)

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Aug. 9 that the Strait of Hormuz would not fully reopen until the United States met Tehran’s demands, including lifting sanctions and paying compensation for war damage.

The Guards said restrictions would remain in place “until the enemy accepts all our conditions,” describing the strait as “a theatre of war” rather than simply a waterway.

Other conditions set out by Iran’s Supreme National Security Council on Aug. 8 include an end to the war on all fronts, the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports and the release of frozen Iranian assets, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.

Tehran also wants to retain control over passage through the strait and levy charges on ships, a position opposed by Washington.

Attacks on vessels have sharply reduced traffic through the waterway, which handled about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments before the war.

U.S. President Donald Trump told Axios on Aug. 10 that Washington was “low-keying it” and only “semi-negotiating” with Tehran, indicating that he favored continued economic pressure for now.

Trump pointed to Iran’s high inflation and shortage of funds, adding: “It’s like a chess game.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran and Washington were only exchanging messages through intermediaries. He added that talks with Oman over future navigation arrangements were “approaching the final stages.”

Oman said negotiations were continuing and urged all sides to avoid actions that could jeopardize them.

Pressure on regional shipping has also spread to the Red Sea, where Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen have declared a blockade of Saudi ports.

The Houthis said on Sunday that they had attacked a Saudi oil facility on the kingdom’s Red Sea coast. Saudi authorities said a fire at the site had been extinguished. The group also launched deadly missile and drone strikes on the government-held Yemeni port of Mokha.

Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan signed a joint defense agreement on Aug. 7 as regional tensions intensified. The pact treats an armed attack on one signatory as an attack on all three.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Saturday that the agreement was not directed at Iran or any other country and was intended to strengthen collective deterrence.

Fidan said he expected Egypt to join the pact, calling it a “natural partner on all issues.”

“We already act toward one another as if we were alliance members,” he said.

Iran names new security chief

Iran also appointed a new secretary of its Supreme National Security Council on Sunday. President Masoud Pezeshkian named former Guards commander Mohsen Rezaei to replace Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, who resigned.

Rezaei, who led the Guards from 1981 to 1997, will also represent Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei on the council. Zolghadr was appointed a political adviser to Khamenei.

Rezaei said in July that control of the Strait of Hormuz was more important than “dozens of atomic bombs.”