US President Donald Trump claims direct negotiations with Iran are under way and has called the current round Tehran's last chance to secure a deal to end the war. Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, denied that any direct negotiations with Washington are ongoing or that any meetings are planned, saying talks over the management of the Strait of Hormuz remain mediated by Oman.
Pakistani and Qatari negotiators are working to arrange a meeting date and venue, according to sources. Pakistan has issued an urgent invitation to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to visit Islamabad, in what appears to be a bid to renew stalled talks.
Mohsen Rezaei, the top military adviser to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, warned that American military vessels and forces will face serious risks and casualties if Washington's naval blockade on Iranian ports continues. He said Iran will never permit the opening of a second corridor in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian and US officials have told the New York Times that Iran and Oman are close to finalising a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping traffic, which would hand Tehran near total control over the waterway.
Meanwhile, a Liberian-flagged ship was struck by an unknown projectile while crossing the strait near Oman's coast, and at least one seafarer remains missing after the crew abandoned the vessel. Rezaei also confirmed that a plan for retaliatory strikes on three sites in Ukraine was scrapped after Kyiv issued an apology for an attack on an Iranian ship.
The five-month US-Iran conflict has boosted oil companies' profits, with BP reporting its quarterly profits more than doubled, Shell confirming its net profit doubled to almost $10bn in the three months to June, and Saudi Aramco seeing a 44 percent rise in net profits over the same period.