Iran and Oman have advanced bilateral talks on temporary shipping corridors, mine clearance, and navigational coordination in the Strait of Hormuz, with frameworks nearing finalization in recent weeks. Iranian officials have repeatedly stated that any such agreement does not equate to reopening restricted transit or lifting controls, which remain conditioned on U.S. fulfillment of broader commitments under prior memoranda, including sanctions relief and blockade adjustments. Ongoing naval enforcement actions, ship interdictions, and IRGC warnings have sustained limited commercial traffic despite the diplomatic progress. Trader consensus at 70% against the blockade lifting first reflects these explicit linkages and the absence of verified de-escalation steps decoupling the two issues within the current timeline.