Iran has stated that it is ready to allow "unfriendly" vessels to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, but only with Tehranʼs consent.
This is reported in the Reuters news.
The Iranians wrote about this in a note from the countryʼs Foreign Ministry, which was forwarded to the UN Security Council, as well as the International Maritime Organization. The document was received by Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on March 22, and was later sent to IMO member states.
It states that ships can safely pass through the strait as long as they are not involved in "aggression against Iran" and comply with safety requirements agreed upon with Iranian authorities.
At the same time, Tehran has banned the passage of vessels and any assets of the US and Israel, as well as other countries that, in its assessment, are participating in hostile actions.
Iran stressed that it had taken "necessary and proportionate measures" to prevent the strait from being used for operations against it.
Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carries about a fifth of the worldʼs oil and liquefied natural gas, has been severely curtailed amid the US-Israeli war against Iran, and restrictions have already disrupted energy markets.
According to Lloydʼs List, the first vessel to take advantage of the new conditions was the Panamanian-flagged cargo ship Newvoyager, owned by the Chinese company, which paid Iran for passage through the strait.
War in the Middle East
On the morning of February 28, the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran. These attacks killed Iranʼs Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and almost the entire military leadership of the country — about 40 key high-ranking officials. A new ayatollah was elected on March 8, and he was Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the deceased Ali Khamenei.
Iran, in response to the US and Israeli attacks, has begun shelling US bases in Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and the UAE and firing missiles at Israel. Some Iranian drones and missiles have hit infrastructure and residential areas in Arab countries.
The war has halted tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow sea corridor between Iran and Oman that connects the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean, sending oil, gas and precious metals soaring. On March 9, global oil prices topped $100 a barrel for the first time in nearly four years.
To keep prices down, the International Energy Agency has decided to release 400 million barrels of oil, and the US plans to release 172 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserve. On March 12, the US lifted sanctions on the purchase of Russian oil that was stuck at sea for 30 days, and a week later it gave permission for Iranian oil.
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