Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araqchi has reiterated that the strait of Hormuz remains open except to Iran's "enemies".
"In our view, the strait of Hormuz is not totally closed," Araqchi said in a televised interview aired late on Wednesday. "It is only closed for our enemies."
He said this stance was "natural" given that Iran is at war. "There is no reason to give right of passage to ships linked to the enemy and their allies."
Traffic through the strait has been heavily restricted since major US–Israeli strikes against Iran on 28 February triggered retaliatory attacks on ships and energy infrastructure across the Mideast Gulf. The disruption has severely curtailed exports of crude, oil products, LNG, fertilizers and other commodities from the region.
"Maybe [the US and Israel] did not believe Iran would obstruct flows through the strait — they thought Iran was bluffing, and that Iran would not dare," Araqchi said. "But we did it, with strength."
Araqchi stressed that Iran has blocked safe passage only for "enemy-linked" vessels, adding that the strait remains open "for others". But he said some shipowners are choosing to avoid the waterway "because of the insecurity", while others are unable to transit because insurers "simply will not provide coverage".
He said "many of these shipowners, or governments that own the ships" have contacted Tehran in recent days seeking assistance to ensure safe transit. "For some of those countries that are friendly to us, and which we have decided to help, safe passage has been provided by our armed forces," he said.
Araqchi said Iran has permitted passage for vessels from "friendly countries, including China, Russia, India, Iraq and Pakistan".
Transit fee
Araqchi's comments provide the clearest picture yet of how Tehran is managing flows through the strait, where traffic remains minimal. Argus tracked two vessels passing daily on 24–25 March.
Iran's Tasnim news agency, which is linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), quoted a member of parliament (MP) as saying legislation is being prepared to formalise a system under which Iran would "collect fees" to ensure the safe passage of ships through the strait.
"This is completely natural," said Mohammad Reza Rezai Kouchi, chairman of parliament's civil affairs commission. "Just as in other corridors, when goods pass through a country, fees are paid. The strait of Hormuz is also a corridor. We ensure its security, so it is natural ships and tankers must pay their fees."
This idea was foreshadowed over the weekend by another MP, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, who said Iran was charging vessel operators $2mn to transit the strait because of the "cost of war". But Iran's embassy in India rejected those claims on Monday, describing Boroujerdi's comments as his personal view.
