EU-RUSSIA: Belgium Reiterates Opposition To Using Frozen Russian Assets For Kyiv

Raz Zimmt, director of the Iran programme at Israel's Institute for National Security Studies think tank, reports on X that there has been a flurry of diplomatic activity regarding Iran in the past couple of hours: "The Pakistani Interior Minister is expected to visit Tehran; Reports indicate that Pakistan is preparing to send official invitations to Abbas Araghchi and Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf to visit Pakistan; Foreign Minister Araghchi held phone calls with his Omani and Pakistani counterparts."

• The reports appear to indicate that diplomacy is advancing towards a deal between Iran and Oman on managing the Strait of Hormuz, despite formal denials from Tehran.
• Earlier Reuters reported that Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said 'no negotiations with the United States were taking place and no meetings were scheduled. Iran had no plans to host foreign delegations or send negotiators abroad in the coming days.'
• According to Reuters, Baghaei added that 'all Iranian negotiators were currently in the country, apart from Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, who was on a religious pilgrimage in Iraq. The only talks under way, he said, were discussions with Oman over management of the Strait of Hormuz.'