Tehran threatens to change the "rules of the game" amid imminent understanding regarding Hormuz

Iran has raised the stakes in its escalation with the United States, amid renewed mutual strikes and heightened tensions around the Strait of Hormuz, while Tehran announced that negotiations with the Sultanate of Oman regarding the establishment of safe navigation routes in the strait have entered their final stages.

Iranian Parliament Speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf stated that “the rules of the game have changed” and that “the era of proportional responses has ended,” warning that any attack on Iranian interests or security would be met with a “faster, harsher, and more painful” response.

These threats came following an escalation in the tanker war, after U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced the targeting of three Iranian tankers in retaliation for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps firing ballistic missiles at two U.S. warships. Tehran, in turn, announced the targeting of three tankers and three vessels linked to the United States.

The Revolutionary Guard warned against using passages in the strait not approved by Tehran, while the Iranian General Staff threatened to expand attacks on U.S. military vessels if the naval blockade and what it described as harassment of Iranian ships continued.

In response, CENTCOM spokesperson Captain Tim Hawkins said U.S. operations to protect navigation had assisted approximately 1,600 commercial vessels in crossing the Strait of Hormuz, transporting around 800 million barrels of oil since mid-May, denying Iran’s claims that a U.S. unmanned military boat had been targeted.

In a related development, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei announced that Tehran and Muscat had conducted “serious and advanced negotiations” to determine safe navigation routes in the Strait of Hormuz, with talks reaching the “final stage.”

Baghaei said a joint understanding between the two countries was expected to be registered with the International Maritime Organization in the coming days to establish a “temporary and safe” navigation route, placing responsibility for the failure of previous talks on third parties.

He affirmed that “the ball is in America’s court” to resume negotiations, accusing Washington of initiating military attacks on Iran and violating a previous understanding between the two sides. He argued that recent U.S. measures represented an extension of what he described as an “economic war,” stressing that Tehran viewed the targeting of U.S. military bases and ships as part of its “right to self-defense.”