TEHRAN, Aug 2 (dpa) -- Negotiations between Iran and Oman over shipping in the Strait of Hormuz are in their final phase, Iran said, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi briefing Cabinet members at the start of their Sunday session, state news agency IRNA reported.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei meanwhile stressed that the situation in the disputed strait would not return to its pre-war status, according to broadcaster Press TV.
Iran was acting in its own interests and would not change its decisions based on threats or intimidation, Baghaei said. However, an agreement with Oman on a new shipping route did not mean the Strait of Hormuz would be opened or closed, the spokesman said, according to state broadcaster IRIB.
The United States and Iran agreed on a framework deal in mid-June. Under the agreement, Tehran is to reach an accord with Oman, in coordination with the strait's other coastal states, on the future management of the waterway.
No details of what a possible agreement could entail were available on Sunday.
The dispute over transit rights through a key route for oil, gas and fertilizer is considered one of the main triggers for the recent escalation in the military conflict between the US and Iran.
--NNN-dpa