DUESSELDORF, GERMANY: Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday (August 17), that talks with Oman were continuing but taking time because of the complexity of the issues and efforts by some actors to undermine the process, adding that diplomatic efforts were underway over three Iranian pilots Qatar says violated its airspace.
Qatar denied on Saturday that it was holding the pilots, saying they had violated Qatari airspace earlier this year and failed to respond to attempts to contact them.
Tensions remained high after Iran on Saturday (August 15) urged Washington to “accept defeat”, while U.S. President Donald Trump called Tehran “very evil” and urged Americans to prepare for sustained high fuel prices.
Since the war between Iran and the United States began in February, Washington has imposed additional maritime, energy and financial sanctions and launched a naval blockade on Iranian ports.
Before U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran began in late February, the Strait of Hormuz handled about one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.
