April 9 (UPI) — The Strait of Hormuz is not open to traffic despite this week’s cease-fire between the United States and Iran, the head of the United Arab Emirates’ state-owned oil company said Thursday.
Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, CEO of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, called on Iran to “unconditionally” open the strait with “no strings attached.”
“This moment requires clarity,” he said in a post on LinkedIn. “So let’s be clear: The Strait of Hormuz is not open. Access is being restricted, conditioned and controlled.”
Iran faced a Tuesday evening deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to the United States and its allies. Tehran had effectively closed the waterway to most traffic after the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran starting Feb. 28.
About one-fifth of the world’s oil passes through the strait, and with restricted access to the waterway, oil prices have climbed globally. President Donald Trump’s issued an ultimatum earlier this week, calling on Iran to reopen the strait or face catastrophic consequences.
The Thai-flagged cargo ship Mayuree Naree is on fire after being hit by Iranian missiles in the Strait of Hormuz, Iran, on March 11. Photo courtesy the Royal Thai Navy/EPA
Iran and the United States reached a two-week cease-fire agreement less than 2 hours before Trump’s deadline in which Iran agreed to reopen the strait.
Freight analysts told CNBC that ship traffic has not increased through the strait since the implementation of the cease-fire.
President Donald Trump speaks during a briefing on Iran in the James S. Brady Briefing Room at the White House in Washington D.C., on Monday. He threatened Iran with increased attacks if the country didn’t reopen the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday evening. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI
Al Jaber said ships must obtain permission from Iran before navigating the Strait of Hormuz.
“That is not freedom of navigation. That is coercion,” he wrote.
British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper confirmed the Iran navy was still imposing restrictions on traffic through the strait, requiring ships to get permission and pay tolls or face attack, the BBC reported.
British Defense Secretary John Healey said requiring tolls to traverse the strait — as Trump suggested — would set a dangerous precedent for global shipping, The Guardian reported.
