Iran has rejected President Donald Trump’s claim that the United States has “total control” of the Strait of Hormuz, saying the waterway will remain closed until Washington changes its behaviour and accepts Iran’s conditions.
The impasse is disrupting commercial shipping through two major regional chokepoints. Talks on Hormuz management remain focused on contacts between Iran and Oman, while attacks have continued in the strait and at Bab al-Mandeb.
What Iran is demanding
Mohsen Rezaie, the newly appointed head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, told China’s ambassador to Tehran that Hormuz would not be opened until the United States changed its behaviour and accepted Iran’s conditions, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.
Iran has linked reopening to the lifting of sanctions, the release of frozen Iranian assets and compensation for attacks. Rezaie also called for an end to the US naval blockade on Iranian ports and a region-wide ceasefire, including in Gaza and Lebanon.
Related coverage: Why the Strait of Hormuz talks are becoming harder to resolve.
Why shipping remains disrupted
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency said shipping levels remained reduced and that attacks and harassment activity persisted as Iran and the US maintained blockades in and around the strait. Trump said on Tuesday that the US “totally control[s]” Hormuz, but Iran disputes that claim.
A US Navy MH-60 helicopter fired two Hellfire missiles at the Panama-flagged M/V Vela Nova in the Gulf of Oman after the United States said the vessel had ignored warnings and attempted to violate its blockade of Iranian ports. US Central Command said the strike disabled the ship’s steering gear and reported no crew casualties.
The wider maritime and diplomatic picture
Six people were killed in a Houthi attack on the Egyptian-owned Tihamah cargo vessel in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, according to Yemeni authorities. Four crew members and two Yemeni rescuers died, while 10 others were injured. Houthi-affiliated media later reported that the ship carried Saudi military equipment, but the Houthis had not directly commented on the attack.
More context: Iran links Strait of Hormuz reopening to US concessions.
Hormuz carries one-fifth of global oil and natural gas shipments in peacetime, while about 11 percent of global oil and 8 percent of liquefied natural gas trade passes through Bab al-Mandeb. Kpler data cited by Reuters showed eight vessels crossed Hormuz on Tuesday, compared with a 10-day average of about 12 and roughly 130 vessels a day before the war.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said last week that talks with Oman on future management of Hormuz and new shipping lanes had reached their final stages. Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Tuesday that he had received positive messages from Tehran and Muscat. Pakistan’s interior minister also travelled to Tehran to encourage a return to negotiations under an interim memorandum brokered by Islamabad and Qatar, which is due to expire next week.
Also read: Hormuz reopening remains out of reach as Iran issues demands.
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