Iran, Oman near deal to control Hormuz traffic and charge ‘service fees’

Iran and Oman are nearing an agreement that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping without U.S. involvement, while placing traffic through the strategic waterway under their joint supervision, the New York Times reported Tuesday. Under the emerging arrangement, vessels entering the Persian Gulf would travel through the northern shipping lane, closer to Iran’s coast, while ships leaving the Gulf would use the southern lane near Oman, people familiar with the proposal told the newspaper. The plan would fundamentally change the status of the strait, which before the war operated as an international waterway open to free navigation. Iranian and Omani control would also come with a cost. Iranian officials told the Times that Tehran did not intend to impose formal tolls, but would instead collect payments described as “service fees.” The money would reportedly cover environmental effects and security for oil tankers, with the revenue divided equally between Iran and Oman. A U.S. official disputed the Iranian account, telling the newspaper that any temporary shipping route through the strait would not require approval from Tehran and would not involve payments to Iran. Iran has insisted since the outbreak of the war that the Strait of Hormuz will not return to its previous status as an unrestricted international passage. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said Washington will not accept an agreement that fails to restore free navigation. “If we create a precedent in the Middle East where a country can decide that it controls an international waterway, charges a toll and blows up your ships if you do not pay, we are creating a very dangerous precedent that will be repeated in other parts of the world,” Rubio said. Trump promises reopening U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that the Strait of Hormuz could reopen “as early as tomorrow,” referring to Tuesday. He said reopening the waterway would be the first stage of a broader process, followed by Iran’s nuclear disarmament. The situation in the Middle East remained tense, however, and the direction of the negotiations was unclear. Trump said Monday evening that talks with Iran were “taking place right now” at Tehran’s request and described them as the country’s “last chance before decapitation.” He also claimed that the strikes he canceled over the weekend would have been “the most extensive since World War II.” “They begged us not to strike, and I had mercy,” Trump said. “Iran knew what was coming. Nothing would have remained if we had attacked.” His remarks came several hours after he accused Iran’s leadership of being “unbelievably duplicitous.” “They ask for a meeting, some would say ‘beg,’ talks begin, and more talks are scheduled for the immediate future, and then they say, openly and proudly, that they are not holding any discussions, that nothing is being discussed, and that they are dealing only with ‘Oman,’” Trump wrote. Trump again insisted Monday evening that talks were underway despite Tehran’s denials. “They always do this when they talk to us, even though they beg for hours and hours for a conversation,” he said. He added that several countries wanted to give Iran “one last chance to sign a good agreement.” In an earlier Truth Social post, Trump dismissed Iranian claims that Tehran would exercise authority over the Strait of Hormuz. “They continue with their usual nonsense and say the Strait of Hormuz will be operated forcefully by them, when it is already completely controlled by the U.S. Navy,” he wrote. Trump said that because of the U.S. blockade, which he described as a “wall of steel,” nothing would enter Iran unless Washington allowed it. “Nothing will pass unless an agreement is reached or there is total surrender,” he wrote. “Whether Iran wants to admit it or not, we are in fact discussing a solution to the problem they created over decades. It is very simple: Iran will never have a nuclear weapon.” Iranian officials, meanwhile, continued to send mixed messages. Ebrahim Rezaei, a member of the Iranian parliament’s National Security Committee, said Tuesday that Iran and the “resistance front” were stronger than before. “Despite the threats, the enemies do not have the ability to launch a comprehensive attack against Iran,” he said. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian adopted a more conciliatory tone. “Iran is defending its borders, but it is not seeking to expand the war,” he said. Meanwhile, reports of attacks in the Strait of Hormuz continued. The Liberia-flagged Minoan Pioneer was struck by an unidentified missile near the coast of Oman while sailing through the waterway, maritime security sources said. The crew abandoned the vessel, and one seafarer was reported missing. British maritime risk management firm Vanguard said the missile reportedly struck the engine room, while a fire broke out in the crew accommodation area. “The crew is fighting the fire and requires assistance, while the third engineer is reported missing,” the company said.