Why is Pezeshkian urging an end to Iran’s ‘no war, no peace’ status?

Published 9 August 2026 · politics

The Iranian president calls for an end to deadlock with the US, declaring it the right moment for a lasting agreement. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian

The Iranian president calls for an end to deadlock with the US, declaring it the right moment for a lasting agreement. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has called for an end to what he describes as a state of “neither war nor peace” with the United States as negotiators seek an agreement to end the war. Pezeshkian said on Saturday that Iran was in a position of strength and he believed it was the right time to reach an agreement with the US. The president’s remarks came as Iran and Oman pursue an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway through which about one-fifth of global oil shipments transited in peacetime. Tehran has de facto imposed a blockade of the strait since the US and Israel began a war on Iran on February 28, which has killed more than 3,400 people. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday said discussions with Oman over transit and management of the strait were “approaching the final stages” but added that the reopening of Hormuz “is subject to other conditions and compensation for the violation” of the June memorandum of understanding (MoU) that Iran signed with the US. He denied that Iran was negotiating with the US, saying they were merely “exchanging messages” via intermediaries. So is Pezeshkian trying to push Iran towards a deal, and what does his statement mean?

What did Pezeshkian say? The Iranian president said he believed now was the best time for an agreement. “There is cohesion, strength and unity in the country, and as far as I know, Iran is considered victorious and powerful in this war,” he told Iranian media. Pezeshkian also said Iran and Washington should have set up a channel to address ceasefire violations. “In any case, violations occur in every memorandum of understanding. In principle, a team should have been formed to address violations back then rather than to fight,” he said. “We need to see how to resolve them now, if a solution is possible, which is currently being worked on in the Oman negotiations. God willing, we will reach a point where we can get out of this state of neither war nor peace.” This past week, Iran and Oman reportedly made significant progress towards an arrangement under which Iran would oversee vessels entering the Gulf while Oman would manage traffic heading out. Araghchi told reporters on Saturday that the ongoing talks are about establishing a “temporary route” in the Strait of Hormuz and said, “We’re almost very close to the result.” On Thursday, Tehran said it had agreed coordinates for new shipping routes through the strait with Oman. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) also said on Saturday that reopening the Strait of Hormuz depended on Washington accepting Iran’s conditions.