\u201cSignals in last two three days are that we are close to some sort of an arrangement,\u201d Asif tells Bloomberg
\nStaff Reporter
\nislamabad
\nDefence Minister Khawaja Asif said on Tuesday the United States and Iran were close to \u201csome sort\u201d of deal, and fellow mediator Qatar said talks on managing the Strait of Hormuz were at an advanced stage, despite reports of new attacks on shipping in regional waters.
\nThe comments offered some hope that Iran and the US can end a stalemate that has in effect blocked the vital waterway, through which a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas flowed before the war. Prospects for a deal had appeared to dim on Monday after the sides\u2019 latest remarks and demands.
\nIn an interview with Bloomberg News, Asif said \u201cthings are shaping up again in favor of a peace arrangement or a deal.\u201d
\n\u201cThe signals in the last two three days are that we are close to some sort of an arrangement.\u201d
\nIranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi in Tehran on Tuesday, Araghchi\u2019s Telegram channel said on Tuesday, without providing further details. Qatar\u2019s Foreign Ministry spokesperson told a briefing earlier on Tuesday that separate discussions between Oman and Iran over management of the Strait of Hormuz were at an advanced stage.
\nIran\u2019s Foreign Ministry\u2019s Public Relations Office did not immediately respond to a call for comment.
\nPakistan and Qatar have been the main mediators in the conflict in which thousands have been killed \u2014 mainly in Iran and Lebanon \u2014 since US and Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28. Iran has hit back by striking US assets and infrastructure in countries including Oman, Jordan, Kuwait, Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
\nOil pares gains on deal hopes
\nOil fell back on Tuesday after hitting a one-week high earlier in trading although it remains much higher than before the war.
\nIran said on Sunday it was nearing a final pact with Oman defining new shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz, which runs between them, but said that in itself would not open the waterway unless the US met certain conditions.
\nThose conditions were largely in line with a memorandum of understanding to end the conflict that was reached between Washington and Tehran in June and included compensation and an end to sanctions and military threats.
\nIranian FM Araghchi said on Sunday that Tehran and Washington were not holding direct talks, but that messages were being exchanged through intermediaries.
\nUS President Donald Trump responded on Monday night, making new demands, saying he was seeking his own reparations from Tehran, seemingly leaving the two sides deadlocked.
\n\u201cWe\u2019re going to ask for money for the damage they\u2019ve done over a 50-year period,\u201d Trump said at the White House, saying payments would cover deaths among both civilian demonstrators and US forces in the region.
\n\u201cSo if there\u2019s damages to be paid, I think Iran should pay those damages,\u201d Trump said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cSignals in last two three days are that we are close to some sort of an arrangement,\u201d Asif tells Bloomberg Staff Reporter islamabad Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on Tuesday the United States and Iran were close to \u201csome sort\u201d of deal, and fellow mediator Qatar said talks on managing the Strait of Hormuz were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":458103,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-561398","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-top-news"],"yoast_head":"\n