Iran’s military said Tuesday the U.S. must respect the Islamic regime’s sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz if it wants international shipping in the waterway to return to prewar levels, as the Trump administration vowed to restart a naval blockade of the country’s ports.
In comments reported by state-affiliated media, Iranian army spokesperson Brig. Gen. Mohammad Akraminia said his country’s conditions for reopening the strait were strict adherence to the Islamabad memorandum of understanding and recognition that Iran will maintain control of the waterway.
He added that Washington attempted to create an “alternative route” through the Strait of Hormuz via Omani waters, which violated the memorandum’s terms.
Gen. Akraminia warned that the strait, through which at least 20% of the world’s oil travels each year, would not be reopened through “U.S. aggression or pressure.”
Iran kept the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed with a combination of sea mines and small boats for nearly four months before signing the memorandum, which set up a ceasefire and the reopening of the waterway for commercial shipping.
His comments come after the U.S. and Iran restarted their war over control of the strait overnight, with both sides launching retaliatory strikes on military targets in the region.
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What began last week with small-scale strikes on commercial vessels in the strait that Iran said were violating the memorandum has since become a full restart of hostilities.
In addition to attacks on Iranian infrastructure, command and control sites, radar installations and missile launching sites, the Pentagon has targeted locations near Iran’s only civilian nuclear plant in the city of Bushehr.
President Trump said Monday the U.S. would resume a naval blockade of Iran’s ports on Tuesday, which had been lifted following the signing of the memorandum of understanding last month.
The flare-up stems from differing readings of the memorandum. Iran has argued that the memorandum provides it with authority over the Strait of Hormuz, while the U.S. says nobody can officially control the waterway.
The agreement says Iran must “make arrangements using its best efforts for the safe passage of commercial vessels with no charge for 60 days only from the Persian Gulf to the Sea of Oman and vice versa.”
Iran must also enter into negotiations with Oman to “define the future administration and maritime services in the strait,” according to the agreement.
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