Iranian media details draft deal with US on Hormuz, assets

Draft Islamabad understanding

Iranian state broadcaster IRIB reported Saturday that a draft informal memorandum of understanding between Tehran and Washington includes provisions granting Iran exclusive authority over vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz alongside the release of $12 billion in frozen assets within 60 days. The unofficial text of the so-called Islamabad understanding — which has not been finalized — outlines proposed security arrangements in the strategic waterway and mechanisms to unblock Iranian funds held abroad without restrictions, according to the state media report.

Strait of Hormuz authority

Under the reported framework, Tehran would retain sole power to determine the status of vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, with any ship carrying cargo or bearing an ultimate beneficiary deemed hostile to Iran denied classification as commercial traffic and barred from designated routes. Iranian authorities would oversee shipping lanes, collect navigation service fees, manage security arrangements and adjudicate compensation for environmental damage, IRIB stated, adding that vessels must submit detailed cargo manifests, ownership records and destination data to qualify for transit.

Asset release safeguards

The draft arrangement would see Washington enable Tehran to access frozen funds through Iranian-designated banks, with negotiators spending hours in Qatar discussing technical mechanisms to prevent the assets from being frozen again, according to Hossein Ghorbanzadeh of Iran's economic negotiating team. "The most important issue was how we can be sure that once these assets are unfrozen, they will not be frozen again through another directive," Ghorbanzadeh told Iranian state television, noting that the proposed safeguards differ from previous asset-release mechanisms and aim to ensure continued access over time.

Diplomatic backdrop

The revelations come as Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf led a high-level Iranian delegation to Doha earlier this week as part of Pakistani-led efforts to end the conflict between Tehran and Washington that began with US and Israeli strikes in late February. A ceasefire took effect April 8 through Islamabad's mediation, though subsequent talks failed to produce a lasting agreement, prompting US President Donald Trump to extend the truce indefinitely as both sides exchange proposals for a framework that could include a 60-day ceasefire extension and a roadmap for negotiations.