Iran says it plans to establish a new restricted zone around the Strait of Hormuz, a global energy chokepoint, after Tehran and Washington traded attacks on ships in the crucial waterway in what experts called a “dangerous escalation”. The two sides have been engaged in on-and-off attacks since a 60-day memorandum of understanding (MoU), signed on June 17, expired last month. The latest escalation started after Iran targeted US warships patrolling and escorting oil tankers trying to evade the Tehran-imposed blockade of the strait.
Meanwhile, a US naval blockade of the Iranian ports has drastically restricted its oil and other trade. The MoU, which had ended the months-long military hostility, collapsed after 60 days due to disputes over who had ultimate control over the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has used as leverage in the war against the United States. Oil tankers have become the latest targets in the US-Israel war on Iran, with Tehran repeatedly warning vessels against using unauthorised routes through the Strait of Hormuz amid reports that a growing number of oil tankers are passing through the waterway.
Prior to the start of the war, 20 percent of the world’s oil and gas supplies flowed through the strait. So, where exactly will Iran’s proposed zone be, what restrictions will apply, and how does Tehran intend to enforce this? Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohsen Rezaei said the zone would be announced in the coming days.
However, Tehran has provided few details about the zone’s precise boundaries or what being placed on its sanctions list would mean for vessels entering it. Rezaei said new maps detailing routes, worked on in conjunction with Oman for the Hormuz Strait, would also be approved soon. There has been no immediate US or wider international response specifically to Rezaei’s announcement of the new zone.
However, on Sunday, Washington rejected an Iranian claim reported in local media that a US vessel had attempted to enter an area Tehran considers restricted and was attacked. US Central Command (CENTCOM) spokesperson Captain Tim Hawkins called the Iranian account “a total lie”. The alleged attack comes days after Washington targeted three Iranian oil tankers and Tehran hit tankers and fired a ballistic missile towards US warships patrolling near the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran is already demanding that vessels use routes it approves through the strait. Iran first published a map of its approved navigation routes in April, directing vessels much closer to the Iranian coastline than they travelled before the war. The route currently authorised by it follows a corridor along Iran’s coast.
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