US gives Iran 24 hours to publicly renounce attacks in Strait of Hormuz
The Trump administration has demanded that Iran, by Saturday, July 11, publicly commit to opening the Strait of Hormuz and stop shelling commercial vessels.
According to Axios, citing three US officials who spoke at a briefing on Friday, Washington has given Tehran until Saturday to publicly declare the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and pledge to cease attacks on commercial ships. The warning was conveyed directly to Iran and also through regional intermediaries.
US officials claim that Iran violated a memorandum of understanding signed three weeks ago by regularly shelling civilian vessels in and around the strait. They stress that Tehran's failure to meet such a simple condition raises serious doubts about its readiness to adhere to a much more complex nuclear agreement.
At the same time, it is noted that after two days of mutual shelling earlier this week, Iranian representatives reached out to Washington, requesting to continue negotiations and acknowledged their mistake. One official said: "They told us: 'We screwed up. We made a mistake. Let's continue negotiations.'" However, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghai denied that Tehran asked for dialogue with the US, stating that Iran only agreed to discuss the situation at the request of Qatari mediators.
According to Axios, Washington expects a clear statement from Iran after the planned meeting of the Iranian and Omani foreign ministers in Muscat on Saturday. "We want them to publicly declare that they will stop shooting at ships and directly or indirectly admit that they screwed up. We are working on that now," one official said. Another US representative warned of severe consequences for Tehran if it refuses to comply.
US officials emphasize that there is an internal power struggle within the Iranian regime over how to implement the memorandum and proceed with negotiations with the Trump administration. "There are elements in their system that want to reach an agreement, but we cannot make decisions for them. They need to take control of the situation," an official said.
As reported, on June 17, the US and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding in Islamabad aimed at ending the active phase of the war between the countries. The document, brokered by Pakistan, provided for a cessation of hostilities, lifting of the US naval blockade on Iran, restoration of free navigation, and a 60-day period to develop a permanent agreement. However, in early July, Iranian forces resumed shelling commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. On July 7-8, US forces struck dozens of military targets in Iran in response to the shelling of three merchant ships. The US Treasury also revoked temporary permits for Iranian oil exports granted under the peace deal. Iran responded with strikes on US military bases in Bahrain and Kuwait. The following day, US President Donald Trump said Tehran had asked Washington to continue talks, but "the US made it clear to them that the ceasefire has already ended."
