New Delhi: The fees levied on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz is here to stay, as Iran will be assessing the costs of its services rendered to merchant shipping and levying a service charge, Kazem Gharibabadi, the Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister said Wednesday.
“The current system is provisional…we are working on a protocol to assess costs Iran and Oman are paying such as navigational support for vessels and accordingly charge a fee. This system will be transparent, non-discriminatory and will not violate international law,” said Gharibabadi while interacting with the media in the national capital.
He added: “We are not a member of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS). We are only charging vessels a fee for services rendered. It is not a transit fee, which would violate international law.”
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The new system to be introduced by Iran comes as the situation surrounding the Strait of Hormuz has drastically shifted since the US and Israel launched its strikes on the West Asian nation at the end of February.
Tehran has effectively closed the Strait, which accounts roughly for a fifth of global energy supplies. As a result, economies around the world have faced major disruptions.
Gharibabadi acknowledged that countries have had to pay a cost due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, while defending the policy as Tehran themselves have been impacted by the war.
Reports have suggested that fees up to $2 million have been paid by vessels to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Gharibabadi was categorical that it is not the “money” that matters, but rather the security of Iran.
The Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister maintained that at the moment, vessels stranded in the Strait linked with the “aggressors” will not be allowed to pass, even if they are willing to pay the fee. “We have, however, allowed several Indian vessels to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. For Friendly countries, we are working to allow the movement of more vessels. If the owners of the companies were more willing to pay fees, the faster their ships can pass through,” said Gharibabadi.
The system currently in place is solely for friendly countries. Last week, the US had attempted to use its naval assets in the region to guide merchant vessels through the Strait of Hormuz. Two US-flagged merchant vessels had been able to safely pass through the Strait of Hormuz, including one owned by Maersk, the Danish shipping giant.
However, a day after the US launched “Project Freedom”, President Donald J. Trump suspended the operation, announcing that negotiations with Iran are moving forward with a positive outlook.
Earlier this week, Trump rejected the latest Iranian proposal, while asserting that the ceasefire is on “life-support”. Gharibabadi highlighted that Iran is ready for any resumption of war, while pointing out that given the US’ track-record Tehran would not be surprised if Washington decided to “betray diplomacy” once again.
“We are ready for negotiations. The US, however, is solely looking to dictate terms. The US terms called for removal of Iranian nuclear material and transfer to America and suspension of enrichment for 20 years,” said Gharibabadi.
The Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister added: “Why would we accept this? Enrichment is the right of every member-state to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty…what the US could not achieve through war, they are trying to force in peace.”
Tehran is focused on five specific areas for the negotiations of a settlement to the war: the complete termination of the war; free navigation through the Strait of Hormuz; lifting of the US naval blockade; issues surrounding Iran’s nuclear programme; and the lifting of unilateral American sanctions.
Gharibabadi said that Tehran is keen to open the Strait of Hormuz for the termination of the war “on all fronts, including Lebanon”. Following the signing of this agreement, Iran would be open to enter a 30-day negotiation period on its nuclear programme including the existing highly enriched uranium, in exchange for the lifting of unilateral American sanctions.
“There was 95 percent agreement on all the terms except the nuclear issue. The US was willing to unfreeze all Iranian assets, worth $25 billion, and terminate the war…however, as you saw, President Trump rejected the proposal,” he said.
The Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister is in India for the BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting to be held on 14 and 15 May. Seyyed Abbas Araghchi, the Iranian Foreign Minister, is set to arrive Wednesday evening. Gharibabadi met with Ambassador Sibi George, Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs, Wednesday.
Open to Indian proposals to end war
The Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister said that Tehran welcomes all proposals to end the war, and communicated Iran’s interest for an Indian proposal during his meeting with Ambassador George.
“We welcome all diplomatic initiatives…A mediator is only a facilitator of carrying messages between the two involved parties – the US and Iran. I requested my counterpart [Ambassador George] for India to come with their own initiative,” said Gharibabadi.
The Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister added: “India has always supported peace in the region…It has been an impartial chair of the BRICS grouping.”
The mediation efforts are currently being undertaken by Pakistan. The first round of direct negotiations between the US and Iran were held in Islamabad on 11 April. However, the talks failed to find a breakthrough to end the war.
Pakistan’s suitability for the role has been questioned by US politicians in recent days, after reports emerged of Iran sending its air force aircraft to Islamabad to protect them from American and Israeli strikes.
When questioned on these reports, Gharibabadi deferred to Islamabad’s statements rejecting the reports that have emerged in American media.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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