Foreign & Public Diplomacy

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at a potential plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Myanmar’s junta’s pursuit of political legitimacy, and domestic mining in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

An agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz remained in the works on Thursday, as mediators separately urged U.S. and Iranian officials to come to a consensus on control of the strategic waterway. With Tehran claiming that it is in the “final stage” of drafting a deal with Oman, all eyes are now on Washington to determine what happens next.

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at a potential plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Myanmar’s junta’s pursuit of political legitimacy, and domestic mining in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

An agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz remained in the works on Thursday, as mediators separately urged U.S. and Iranian officials to come to a consensus on control of the strategic waterway. With Tehran claiming that it is in the “final stage” of drafting a deal with Oman, all eyes are now on Washington to determine what happens next.

Regional sources told Reuters that the proposed deal between the two Middle Eastern countries would give Iran oversight over all traffic entering the Persian Gulf through the strait. It is unclear how control would be defined; Tehran demands the right to board and charge commercial vessels, but Gulf mediators insist upon their right to supervise inspections and maintain that payments should be voluntary.

Either way, any level of Iranian control over the strait would mark a major geopolitical shift in Tehran’s favor, as prior to the onset of war in February, ships could pass through Hormuz freely and without facing tolls.

The 60-day framework reportedly under discussion would also require outbound traffic to pass through Omani waters rather than Iranian territory. Parties would have 30 days to begin de-mining the strait’s median lane, and ships would eventually be cleared to use this route in both directions. Analysts remain uncertain as to........

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