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Iran says Hormuz transit understanding with Oman contingent on US fulfilling commitments

Iran has reached an understanding with Oman on transit arrangements through the Strait of Hormuz, but its implementation is contingent on the US fulfilling its commitments, a senior Iranian diplomat said on Saturday. "This understanding will not automatically enter the implementation stage,” Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs Kazem Gharibabadi said, according to Tasnim news agency. “Implementing this understanding requires the other side, particularly the US, to fulfill its commitments. Whenever these commitments are implemented, Iran will also take its measures,” he said. Gharibabadi said Iran was in no hurry to reopen the strait and would continue its “defensive measures” and efforts to “counter threats.” “These measures are not new, and if Washington is interested in returning to the path of diplomacy, it must accept responsibility for its past actions,” he added. He said the necessary arran...

Russian intelligence chief confirms meeting with CIA director during Moscow visit

Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Director Sergey Naryshkin on Thursday confirmed that he met with CIA Director John Ratcliffe, who arrived in Moscow earlier this week. In remarks to journalists in the Russian capital, Naryshkin described the meeting with Ratcliffe as “nothing unusual,” saying their talks were “part of our working format.” “During the meeting, we discussed several issues that fall within the purview of intelligence services. And intelligence services' purview is a rather delicate and specific matter,” the SVR chief added. The Kremlin confirmed Wednesday that Ratcliffe visited Moscow on Tuesday, the first visit by a CIA chief since 2021, saying it involved contacts between security services and describing such contacts as a "positive phenomenon, a positive process." Read: Pak urges Russia, Ukraine to restart peace talks According to Flightradar24, a US Air Force C-17A Globemaster III flew from the Latvian capital of Riga to Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport on Tuesday. The aircraft had arrived two days earlier from Camp Springs in the US, near Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, where White House aircraft are often based. The aircraft departed Moscow and returned to Riga later the same evening, according to Flightradar24 data. CBS News later reported, citing sources familiar with the situation, that the CIA director was in the Russian capital for meetings. Axios, citing a source, reported that Washington told Kyiv that a senior delegation would visit Moscow and asked Ukraine to suspend strikes until the delegation leaves the country. Later Wednesday, US President Donald Trump characterised Ratcliffe's visit to Moscow as "semi-routine," dismissing reports that the visit was linked to potential Russian military threats against NATO or the UK.

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