Iran's leaders are seeking to reach a peace agreement with Washington before the US midterm elections in November, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing an Iranian diplomatic source. According to the source, Iranian officials believe the pressure on Trump to deliver an achievement ahead of the elections will enable them to push him into making concessions in the negotiations.
In recent days, the US has stopped its attacks on Iranian targets in an effort to secure a ceasefire that would restore commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Mediators hope that if an interim agreement is reached and tensions ease, it could pave the way for a comprehensive peace agreement based on the memorandum of understanding signed by the US and Iran about two months ago.
Meanwhile, talks between Iran and Oman are continuing in an effort to defuse tensions between the two countries following Iranian attacks across the Gulf in recent weeks.
Senior Iranian officials were angered when Oman joined forces with the US and introduced an alternative route bypassing the Iranian-controlled passage through the Strait of Hormuz, preventing Tehran from charging vessels that used it. Attacks on ships using the Omani route prompted the US military campaign against Iran over the past two weeks. Omani representatives in the negotiations proposed establishing a regional consortium to handle security in the strait, search-and-rescue operations and other matters. According to sources close to the talks, Gulf states have offered to finance the new body.
The sides have yet to reach an agreement, mainly because Iran continues to insist on charging vessels for passage through the strait. US President Donald Trump spoke to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday and confirmed that contacts with Iran had resumed. "There is a good chance that something could happen," Trump said. "But if it does not, we will go back to what we were doing a few days ago."
The Iranian Foreign Ministry, however, said the US and Iran had "exchanged messages" but declined to describe them as contacts. Nevertheless, Iranian officials acknowledged that progress had been made during the talks with senior Omani officials.
