The Strait of Hormuz, expectedly, emerged as a major point of contention during the peace talks between Iran and the United States in Pakistan, with the Iranian media saying that the other side was making “excessive demands” regarding the Strait.
According to Fars news agency, the United States made “unacceptable demands” on several issues during the war. “The US is making excessive demands regarding the Strait… the US has also made unacceptable demands on several other issues,” it said.
However, according to a Pakistani official, the talks were “progressing in the right direction” after two rounds, reported news agency AFP.
Also read: US forces start clearing mines from Hormuz Strait as talks on in Pakistan, Trump says ‘will soon be open’
“I can say that discussions are moving positively and the overall atmosphere is cordial,” the agency quoted the official as saying, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The Iranian state TV reported that a third round of negotiations will also take place tonight. The ongoing talks, in which negotiators from the both the sides reportedly spoke face-to-face, are the highest-level talks between the United States and Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution.
‘Starting process to clear Strait of Hormuz’
As both the countries engaged in talks on Saturday in Pakistan, dubbed as ‘Islamabad Talks’, US President Donald Trump said that they were starting the “process of clearing out the Strait of Hormuz”.
Also read: US-Iran ceasefire talks hit stalemate over Hormuz; Trump shares update after warships cross
He also claimed that 28 of Iran’s mine dropper boats were “lying at the bottom of the sea”, indicating that they are not a threat anymore.
“The only thing they have going is the threat that a ship may “bunk” into one of their sea mines which, by the way, all 28 of their mine dropper boats are also lying at the bottom of the sea. We’re now starting the process of clearing out the Strait of Hormuz as a favor to Countries all over the World, including China, Japan, South Korea, France, Germany, and many others. Incredibly, they don’t have the Courage or Will to do this work themselves. Very interestingly, however, empty Oil carrying ships from many Nations are all heading to the United States of America to LOAD UP with Oil,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Hours later, Trump made another post in which he wrote that the Strait of Hormuz “will soon be open” and “the empty ships are rushing to the United States to “load up.””
On Tuesday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said that two US warships — USS Frank E. Peterson (DDG 121) and USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112) — passed through the Strait of Hormuz as the forces began setting conditions for clearing mines in the key trade waterway.
CENTCOM said that the warships passed the Strait of Hormuz and operated in the Arabian Gulf “as part of a broader mission to ensure the strait is fully clear of sea mines previously laid by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.”
