During the two-week truce, Iran announced a new tariff for tankers wishing to pass through the Strait of Hormuz — $1 in bitcoin for each barrel of oil.
This was reported by Hamid Hosseini, a representative of the Iranian Oil Exporters Union, in an interview with the Financial Times.
He said each ship must report its cargo in advance via email. After inspection, Iran determines the amount of the fee that must be paid.
The payment can be made in just a few seconds — this, according to the Iranian side, is done so that it cannot be tracked or blocked due to sanctions.
Empty tankers will be able to pass through free of charge. At the same time, Iran plans to inspect ships to prevent the transport of weapons.
Almost no one now passes through the strait, except for a few ships linked to Iran. Hundreds of tankers have piled up in the gulf, waiting for safe passage.
War in the Middle East and negotiations between Iran and the US
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.
Iran responded by launching attacks on Arab countries and Israel. The war also 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. It is through it that almost a fifth of the worldʼs oil exports — tens of millions of barrels a day — passed.
Donald Trump claimed that negotiations had been held with Iran, which were allegedly initiated by Tehran. During them, according to the US president, the parties reached an agreement on 15 points. One of them is Iranʼs refusal to give up nuclear weapons.
Against the background of the negotiations, the US suspended attacks on Iranian energy facilities until April 6, then Trump named another deadline — no later than 03:00 Kyiv time on Wednesday, April 8. The US president promised that if Iran does not open the Strait of Hormuz by that time, the US will destroy all the countryʼs power plants and bridges.
On March 30, Trump reported that Iran had agreed to most of the demands of his 15-point peace plan. To confirm its willingness to negotiate, Iran gave the United States a “gift” of 20 oil tankers that passed through the Strait of Hormuz.
On April 5, the Iranian military threatened the United States and Israel that “the gates of hell will open” if there were further attacks. President Trump had previously made a similar statement and called on Iran to accept a proposed peace deal.
On April 6, Iran, through Pakistan, submitted a 10-point peace plan proposal to the United States. The American president then rejected it, saying it was an important but insufficient step.
Shortly before the deadline, on April 7, Trump declared that “an entire civilization will perish tonight and never be resurrected”. At around 01:30 on April 8 Kyiv time — an hour and a half before the deadline — Trump reported that the US and Iran had agreed to a two-week ceasefire. During that time, the countries are to agree on a final peace agreement. Israel has also agreed to a ceasefire.
Trump called the 10-point peace plan, which Iran previously transmitted through Pakistan, a working basis for negotiations that should consolidate a full peace agreement in two weeks. Here are all the points of the plan. At the same time, The Guardian writes that the English version of the plan, which Iranian diplomats gave to journalists, does not include a point on Iranʼs right to enrich uranium.
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