IRGC says Hormuz safe again after US-Iran talks advance

Shafaq News- Tehran

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy on Wednesday said safe and stable passage through the Strait of Hormuz had become possible following the removal of threats posed by “aggressors,” the first such announcement since Tehran shut the waterway on February 28.

In a statement, the IRGC Navy noted the role of shipowners anchored in the Gulf who cooperated with Iran’s new transit regulations governing passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

Earlier today, US President Donald Trump paused “Project Freedom,” the military operation launched to protect commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, citing progress in negotiations with Iran and requests from Pakistan and other countries. Reuters, quoting a Pakistani source, confirmed that the two sides were close to reaching an agreement and could “finish the matter very soon” with a US-Iran deal.

“After several weeks of war and significant disruption to the world’s oil, natural gas, helium, and fertilizer industry all sides want to end the war,” Retired US Army Colonel Myles B. Caggins III and senior nonresident fellow at the New Lines Institute told Shafaq News. “The de-escalation is likely to continue with a peace negotiation that will allow all sides to declare victory.”

Axios, citing US officials, also reported that Washington and Tehran were nearing a one-page memorandum aimed at ending the war, with the United States expecting an Iranian response on several key points within 48 hours. The proposed framework includes suspending Iran’s uranium enrichment activities, lifting US sanctions, releasing Iranian funds, and removing restrictions imposed by both sides on navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.