Iran has approved 20 Pakistani-flagged vessels to sail though the strait of Hormuz, Pakistani deputy prime minister and foreign minister Ishaq Dar said on social media Saturday.
Under the agreement, two Pakistani ships per day will be allowed to sail through the strait, which has largely been closed to most vessel by the Iranian threat of attack since the war started.
"This positive announcement marks a meaningful step toward peace and will strengthen our collective efforts in that direction", Dar said in his post on X. "Dialogue, diplomacy, and such confidence-building measures are the only way forward."
At least two Pakistani vessels have passed through the strait of Hormuz since the war started. Lorax, also known as Karachi, left the UAE's Das Island on 28 February, vessel tracking data show, and is on route to Karachi, Pakistan, carrying around 500,000 bl of crude. P Aliki passed Hormuz on 11 March carrying nearly 600,000 bl of crude from Ras Tanura to Karachi, Vortexa data show.
Iran's foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi recently thanked Pakistan for "their full-throated expression of solidarity and support with the people and government of the Islamic Republic of Iran".
