\u201cThe countries of the region have realized that security is not a commodity that can be bought from false brokers,\u201d foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said at a weekly press conference, referring to the US, an ally of the three signatories to the pact.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny plan that is based on the geopolitical and historical realities of the region, is comprehensive and inclusive, and correctly identifies the enemy and the threat, has a chance of helping to strengthen security and prevent instability and abuses by the Zionist enemy and its allies,\u201d he added, referring to Israel.<\/p>\n
\u201cCountries in the region cannot rely on the claim of security provided by the US as in the past,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
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\t\t\t\tBy signing up, you agree to the terms<\/a><\/p>\n He also said Iran was not concerned that the pact could be aimed at it, highlighting \u201cdeep religious, historical, and civilizational ties\u201d with Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan.<\/p>\n \t While all three countries are key US allies in the region, only Turkey has relations with Israel, though it is perhaps the most vocally anti-Israel, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan frequently comparing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, and consistently offering diplomatic support for Hamas.<\/p>\n Pakistan has also upped its rhetorical attacks<\/a> on Israel in recent months, with its defense minster calling Israel \u201ca threat to the entire Muslim world,\u201d and urging a \u201cunited military front\u201d against it in Saturday comments.<\/p>\n Iran says Oman talks \u2018progressing smoothly,\u2019 prepared for Trump\u2019s \u2018chess\u2019 games<\/p>\n As three of its most powerful regional neighbors signed a defense pact, Iran has been engaged in talks with Oman to temporarily reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which Baghaei said on Monday were\u00a0\u201cprogressing smoothly and constructively.\u201d<\/p>\n He said an agreement had been reached on a shipping route map, while some technical issues on a joint statement remained unresolved.<\/p>\n \t He said during his weekly press conference in Tehran that the discussions also covered mechanisms for safe navigation, environmental protection, maritime services, and combating crime, adding that such services would normally entail receiving payment in return.<\/p>\n Over the weekend, Iran laid out drastic new conditions<\/a> for lifting the blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, which carried about one-fifth of the world\u2019s commercial oil shipments before the war began, including a complete withdrawal of US forces from the region, an end to regional wars between US allies and Iranian proxies, and the lifting of all sanctions.<\/p>\n The new conditions stymied mediators\u2019 hopes last week that Iran, Oman, and the US would announce a deal to reopen the key waterway, after reports that a deal could be announced as soon as last weekend.<\/p>\n US President Donald Trump said Sunday that Washington was \u201clow-keying\u201d<\/a> its approach to Iran and only \u201csemi-negotiating\u201d with the Islamic Republic, instead waiting for economic pressure to mount on Iran.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are just watching Iran with its huge inflation and the fact they have no money,\u201d he said. \u201cIt will work out. It always works out. It\u2019s like a chess game.\u201d<\/p>\n \t Responding to those comments, Baghaei said that Iranians have shown \u201cthey are professional chess players,\u201d and are prepared to wait out the American pressure and keep the Strait of Hormuz closed.<\/p>\n He reiterated that \u201cas long as the US naval blockade continues\u2026 as long as other violations by the United States continue, the necessary conditions for saying that the Strait of Hormuz has become a safe waterway will not exist.\u201d<\/p>\n Pezeshkian says supreme leader urged \u2018unity\u2019 in rare meeting<\/p>\n Later Monday, Iran\u2019s President Masoud Pezeshkian described a nearly seven-hour meeting that he recently had with Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, saying: \u201cI discussed with him all of the country\u2019s issues, including people\u2019s livelihoods, the state of the market, employment, housing, sanctions, how we stand firm, the people\u2019s support, unity and cohesion.\u201d<\/p>\n Pezeshkian told the state-run IRIB that he and Khamenei emphasized unity among Iranians.<\/p>\n \t \u201cAll of the enemy\u2019s plans are aimed at creating division,\u201d Pezeshkian said. \u201cWhat we have to do is prevent divisions from emerging.\u201d<\/p>\n The meeting was also said to have focused on the repercussions of the war.<\/p>\n Mojtaba Khamenei has not made any public appearances since he became supreme leader, and no recordings of him speaking have been aired \u2014 only written statements attributed to him by state media. He was reportedly injured and possibly deformed in some manner during the attack that killed his father at the start of the war, and he has remained in hiding, reportedly communicating with other senior regime figures via a slow array of intermediaries to avoid being targeted.<\/p>\n
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<\/a>
\n\t\tIranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei during the weekly press conference held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tehran, Iran, on February 10, 2026. (ATTA KENARE \/ AFP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26208466949396-e1785422983213-640x400.jpg\")
<\/a>
\n\t\tSmall boats line the shore as cargo ships and other commercial vessels appear anchored in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, July 27, 2026. (Razieh Poudat\/ISNA via AP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26221799431203-640x400.jpg\")
<\/a>
\n\t\tPresident Donald Trump waves as he walks from Air Force One to Marine One, August 9, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo\/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/iran\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/AP26186695771777-e1783723942347-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tA man holds a picture of Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei at the Imam Khomeini Mosalla Grand Mosque, during funeral ceremonies for slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei and members of his family, in Tehran, Iran, July 5, 2026. (AP\/Altaf Qadri)<\/p>\n
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