MP and foreign minister under Ahmadinejad, Manouchehr Mottaki, told Euronews that multiple ships a day were being disabled as the IRGC Navy worked to bring unauthorised transit to zero.
asserted
Navy → tell → zero
He called on Washington to lift its naval blockade strangling the Iranian economy before talks resume.
asserted
talks → call → economy
A senior Iranian official told Euronews the standoff in the Strait of Hormuz was unsustainable, as Iran and the US continued their concurrent blockades and cargo ships were being disabled in the crucial waterway daily.
asserted
ships → tell → waterway
"This situation is not sustainable," Manouchehr Mottaki, a member of Iran's parliament and foreign minister under former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, told Euronews.
asserted
Mottaki → tell → Euronews
"The immediate obstacle to moving beyond this situation is the blockade, a blockade that the Americans are carrying out illegally, in violation of international law."
asserted
Americans → move → law
Tehran has imposed its own blockade, stating it would allow vessels from China, India, Iraq and Qatar to pass through the strait freely while blocking or targeting ships from countries it deems aligned with the US.
asserted
it → impose → US
Mottaki said the IRGC Navy had, over the past 10 days, been working to bring unauthorised transit through the strait to zero.
"
asserted
Navy → say → zero
Every day, three, four, five, or even seven ships are being immobilised or stranded at sea as a result of encounters with mines or drone and missile projectiles," he said.
asserted
he → immobilise → mines
He described the closure of Hormuz as the root of the regional crisis.
asserted
He → describe → crisis
"Before the war, the strait was open, and all maritime traffic was taking place.
asserted
traffic → take → place
Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa were all conducting their maritime traffic through the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz," Mottaki said.
asserted
Mottaki → conduct → Hormuz
He called on Washington to lift the naval blockade as a precondition for resuming talks.
asserted
He → call → talks
"Following this defeat suffered by (US President Donald) Trump and his party in the US elections, I think we need to make it very clear to them that they are committed to implementing the memorandum of understanding, and that, as a first step, they must lift this blockade," Mottaki said.
asserted
Mottaki → follow → blockade
"Personally, I believe that in order to move beyond a state of neither war nor peace, we must put an end to this blockade."
asserted
we → believe → blockade
The interview came as Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, travelled to Russia for a meeting with President Vladimir Putin.
asserted
Rezaei → come → Putin
He is reportedly carrying a message from Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, with the main subject of the talks understood to be how to end the war, according to media outlets close to the IRGC.
uncertain
subject → carry → IRGC
Rezaei had previously told US Vice President JD Vance, in a response to a letter, that Washington's proposals were not convincing and that Tehran's conditions for reopening the strait must be met in full.
asserted
conditions → tell → strait
The midterm results have opened divisions within the Trump administration over the war.
asserted
results → open → war
Vance published a lengthy statement on Wednesday directly attributing the Republicans' heavy defeat to the Iran war, saying voters who had backed Trump in 2024 turned against the party because of the decision to launch strikes on Iran.
asserted
who → publish → Iran
Trump acknowledged on Wednesday that the war had contributed to the defeat, but insisted he would make the same decision again, adding he had no immediate plans to attack Iran but had not ruled out further use of force.
asserted
he → acknowledge → force
US media reported that a large joint military operation with Israel remained under consideration.
asserted
operation → report → consideration
Iran's parliament speaker Mohammad Ghalibaf addressed a social media post directly to Vance.
asserted
speaker → address → Vance
"Your boss is preparing the next stage of the war, while America is on the verge of falling into Israel's fire pit," Ghalibaf said.
asserted
Ghalibaf → prepare → pit
Why don't you say these things to your boss?"
asserted
you → say → boss
Tehran has said the Strait of Hormuz will reopen only once Washington accepts seven conditions, including ending the US naval blockade, lifting oil sanctions, unfreezing Iranian assets abroad, and halting the broader Middle East war.
asserted
Washington → say → war
The narrow waterway between Iran and Oman is the only sea route out of the Persian Gulf and carries roughly a fifth of the world’s oil supply.
asserted
waterway → carry → supply
The Aporia
