Abbas Araghchi: Strait of Hormuz will not return to its pre-war status

Abbas Araghchi, the Islamic Republic's foreign minister, said on Sunday, 25 October 2026, that the Strait of Hormuz will not return to its pre-war status and that the government's policies will not change whether or not war resumes. He spoke as Donald Trump has raised the possibility of a new attack on the Islamic Republic, possibly as early as this week.

Araghchi said there is talk of war again these days, but that he is already thinking about "after the war". According to him, the two previous wars failed to achieve their goals and a third attempt would also fail. The Islamic Republic's foreign minister also said US bases in the region have become the main source of insecurity for their host countries and that the presence of foreign forces in the region must be brought down to zero.

Claim of a US drone downed over Bandar Abbas

At the same time, the public relations office of the Islamic Republic's army claimed on Sunday that air defences had hit and destroyed a US LUCAS drone over Bandar Abbas. The US military had not commented on the claim at the time of publication, and no independent source has confirmed it. In July, the Islamic Republic made a similar claim about downing a LUCAS drone over Bandar Abbas.

Strait of Hormuz: the Islamic Republic's lever of pressure

Araghchi's remarks come a day after Reza Amiri Moghadam, the Islamic Republic's ambassador to Pakistan, disclosed an offer to reopen the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for lifting the US naval blockade. A news agency affiliated with the IRGC later denied the offer. Officials of the Islamic Republic had already said that the strait would no longer be managed as it was before the war and had spoken of charging ships for "services", a position that Oman, the other partner on this waterway, has not joined.

Donald Trump said on Saturday that either he would have to finish the Islamic Republic off or Tehran would make a deal. US media have reported that US Central Command has prepared options for a new strike.

On the eve of a possible new war, the Islamic Republic's foreign minister still presents the Strait of Hormuz as the regime's lever of pressure on the world.