Iran Vows to Charge Global Shipping in Strait of Hormuz After Grace Period

Описание: Iran Vows to Charge Global Shipping in Strait of Hormuz After Grace Period



In a move that threatens to reignite tensions with Washington, Iranian Parliament Speaker and Chief Negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf declared that Tehran will systematically charge commercial vessels transit fees to cross the strategic Strait of Hormuz once a temporary 60-day grace period lapses.

The assertion directly challenges the long-standing international consensus on free maritime passage and stands in sharp contrast to U.S. President Donald Trump's repeated declarations that the waterway must remain completely toll-free. The unresolved dispute introduces a volatile economic wild card into the fragile preliminary peace framework signed to end the 15-week war.

"The Strait of Hormuz will not return to pre-war conditions," Ghalibaf stated during a primetime interview on Iranian state television. "The memorandum formally recognizes Iran's right to receive payments for services provided to ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. After the 60-day fee-free period expires, we plan to charge service fees for ships crossing the strait."

The legal battle stems from a subtle linguistic loophole within the 14-point Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). While the U.S. successfully negotiated a 60-day "toll-free" window to allow immediate commercial maritime traffic to resume and clear dangerous naval mines, the interim text fails to explicitly ban future administrative fees.

Ghalibaf clarified that Tehran is deliberately drawing a distinction between an illegal geopolitical "toll" and a "service fee" for maritime security, route management, and environmental safety overseen by coastal states. However, global shipping insurers and Western defense analysts warn that any forced fee system essentially grants Iran an permanent economic lever over 20 percent of the world's petroleum supply.

Confirming the temporary truce terms, Iran’s Supreme National Security Council announced that commercial ships will face zero charges for exactly two months, during which the Iranian government will absorb all transit management costs.

The announcement has injected a wave of anxiety back into global commodity markets, which had initially celebrated the formal end of military hostilities. Tanker operators are now forced to factor a strict 60-day countdown into their long-term supply chain math.

The maritime dispute will take center stage this Friday in Geneva, Switzerland, where official delegations led by U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Iranian diplomats are scheduled to open fast-tracked, 60-day technical negotiations. Washington has consistently argued that under international maritime law, international straits cannot be subjected to unilateral commercial checkpoints.

Despite the looming diplomatic showdown, Ghalibaf framed the newly signed accord as a total victory for Tehran's regional leverage, asserting that the months of conflict successfully forced the West to respect Iranian sovereignty. “We did not allow any of the nine goals stated by the United States for starting the war to be realized,” Ghalibaf concluded. “The strait is in our hands.”


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