No negotiations are underway with Iran to guarantee safe passage through the Hormuz Strait for Italian ships or oil tankers, an Italian foreign ministry source has said, denying a report in The Financial Times, Reuters reports.

“In their diplomatic contacts, Italian leaders want to favour the conditions for a general military de-escalation, but there is no under-the-table negotiation aimed at preserving only some merchant ships at the expense of others,” the source has said.