BEIJING — Iran will grant China and other countries it considers friendly special concessions on planned service fees for ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's ambassador to China said, signaling preferential treatment as Tehran seeks to establish a new framework for managing one of the world's most strategically important shipping lanes.
Iranian Ambassador Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli said the concessions would apply when Tehran determines the level and structure of fees for commercial vessels using the waterway, describing the Strait of Hormuz as a matter of Iranian national security following recent regional conflict. His remarks were made at the World Peace Forum in Beijing and reported by multiple media outlets.
Rahmani Fazli said new arrangements concerning the strait would be developed in cooperation with Oman, without providing details on how the proposed fee system would operate or when it would take effect.
The announcement comes after an interim agreement reached in June between Iran and the United States to halt hostilities provided for commercial ships to transit the Strait of Hormuz without charge for 60 days while broader negotiations continue. Iranian officials have since said they intend to secure long-term recognition of Tehran's authority to regulate shipping through the waterway and eventually impose transit charges once the interim period expires.
The United States and Gulf Arab states have rejected Iran's position, maintaining that the Strait of Hormuz is an international waterway where Iran and Oman cannot unilaterally impose transit fees or restrict navigation. Washington has repeatedly said freedom of navigation through the strait must be preserved under international law.
China, the largest buyer of Iranian crude oil, has called for the restoration of safe and uninterrupted shipping through the strait, saying free navigation serves the interests of all countries. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said this week that the Strait of Hormuz is an international navigation route and urged a settlement that addresses the concerns of all parties.
The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea and is one of the world's most important energy chokepoints, handling roughly one-fifth of global seaborne oil and liquefied natural gas shipments in peacetime.
No timetable has been announced for implementing the proposed fee system, and negotiations over the future governance of the waterway remain ongoing.
