Iran announced Monday that negotiations with Oman over the future management of the Strait of Hormuz have reached their final stage, with a formal understanding expected to be registered with the International Maritime Organization within days. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the two countries, which sit on opposite sides of the strategic waterway, are close to an agreement establishing a temporary safe transit route through the strait. Both sides have previously raised the possibility of levying fees on commercial vessels transiting the passage, a prospect the United States has opposed.

The diplomatic developments came as Gulf states publicly grappled with the security lessons of the recent U.S.-Iran war. Qatar's Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari, speaking at the Hili Forum in Abu Dhabi, said the conflict had demonstrated that Gulf nations cannot rely solely on their strategic partnership with the United States for protection. Qatar was among the countries repeatedly struck by Iranian missiles and drones in retaliation for American military operations during the height of the fighting. Al Ansari called self-reliance in security matters "the only way forward."

A senior Emirati official struck a more conciliatory tone toward Tehran while echoing concerns about Gulf unity. Anwar Gargash, a diplomatic adviser to the UAE president, said Persian Gulf countries had failed to mount a coordinated collective defense during the conflict, with each nation largely acting independently. He described restoring a functional relationship with Iran as geographically unavoidable but cautioned that rebuilding genuine trust would be a far more difficult and separate task.

Meanwhile, Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun condemned ongoing Israeli airstrikes in the country's south, which local media reported killed 11 people on Monday. Speaking during a meeting with visiting French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin, Aoun said the strikes undermined regional de-escalation efforts and called the killings of civilians unjustifiable crimes. The continued military activity in Lebanon adds another layer of instability to a region already unsettled by the aftermath of the U.S.-Iran conflict and rising energy prices driven by uncertainty over Hormuz transit.