Oman has submitted a formal proposal to the US and its allies for shipping companies to pay service fees for Strait of Hormuz transit, according to the New York Times. A diplomatic source described the fee as voluntary, but an Iranian source said it is mandatory. The US administration has accepted the proposal in principle while raising technical reservations, the report says.
The New York Times reports that Oman and Iran are moving forward with a plan to charge commercial vessels for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, and that the US administration has accepted the proposal in principle while raising technical reservations. An Iranian source tells the Times that the fees are mandatory — a stronger claim than in earlier reports, where Omani sources described them as voluntary.
This update confirms a progression The Zioneer has tracked since Monday, June 29, when we reported (at 10:58 Jerusalem time) that an Iranian deputy foreign minister had arrived in Oman for talks. Subsequent versions at the same Monday timestamp noted Iran's threat of unilateral action if Oman did not cooperate, and then the revelation of an Omani proposal modeled on the Straits of Malacca and Singapore. At 17:36 Tuesday, The Zioneer reported the New York Times story as first relayed by N12, which already juxtaposed voluntary Omani framing against an Iranian mandatory claim.
The current report adds that the US has accepted the Omani proposal in principle. As The Zioneer earlier reported in background pieces on Sunday, June 28 (at 20:37 Jerusalem), vessels were already shifting to the Omani side of the strait, and the Trump administration had previously called toll collection a 'red line.'
It remains unclear whether the fee will ultimately be voluntary or mandatory, and what technical objections the US will raise. The detail of an Iranian source explicitly stating the fee is mandatory has not been independently corroborated by additional sources.
7 developments
- StrongIran says it will hold talks with Oman to set fees for Strait of Hormuz passage
- DevelopingReport: Oman submits formal Strait of Hormuz proposal to US
- DevelopingIran Begins Charging Ships for Strait of Hormuz Transit — Up to $2 Million Per Vessel
- StrongIran: Strait of Hormuz management is solely Iran and Oman's responsibility, toll collection continues
Source and signal
- Internal intake