TEHRAN — Iran has said it will impose transit fees on commercial vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which a significant share of global oil shipments pass, according to remarks attributed to senior Iranian officials.
First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref was quoted as saying that Tehran is assuming “full administrative and security oversight” of the strait under a new operational framework, adding that vessels transiting the waterway would be required to pay charges for services provided during passage.
He said oil tankers had previously been exempt from such fees as a gesture of “hospitality,” but argued that the continued use of Iranian-monitored routes now required compensation to cover operational costs.
The announcement, if implemented, could heighten tensions over one of the world’s most sensitive maritime chokepoints, where freedom of navigation has long been a source of dispute between Iran and Western powers.
The Strait of Hormuz, linking the Gulf to the Arabian Sea, is a critical route for global energy supplies, and any move to regulate or tax passage through it would likely draw strong international scrutiny.
