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The United States said on Tuesday (local time) that the southern route through the Strait of Hormuz remains free and open for all commercial vessels despite what it described as "unwarranted Iranian aggression," with US Central Command (CENTCOM) stating that American forces have assisted more than 1,000 vessels in safely transiting the strategic waterway over the past three months.
In a post on X, US CENTCOM said, "The southern route through the Strait of Hormuz remains free and open for all commercial vessels seeking to transit the international waterway. Over the past three months, U.S. forces have assisted more than 1,000 vessels in successfully transiting the strait despite unwarranted Iranian aggression, and these transits continue today." The statement comes amid heightened tensions over the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's busiest maritime chokepoints for global energy shipments, and competing claims by Washington and Tehran over navigation through the waterway. Earlier, a United States official told Al Jazeera that any temporary shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz would not require permits, approvals or fees, asserting that no single party controls navigation through the international waterway. According to Al Jazeera, the official said that "any temporary routes through the Strait of Hormuz will be without obstacles, permits, approvals or fees," adding that no party controls the shipping routes or vessels' ability to transit through them. The remarks followed statements by senior Iranian military adviser Mohsen Rezaee, who rejected US President Donald Trump's comments on reopening the Strait of Hormuz. According to Iran's Press TV, Rezaee said Iran would not permit any shipping route through the strategic waterway other than the one designated by Tehran. He also alleged that the United States had violated a previous memorandum of understanding concerning the Strait before launching attacks and warned that any US warships using what he termed an unauthorised route would be targeted. Meanwhile, President Trump said discussions were underway to "completely" reopen the Strait of Hormuz, describing the restoration of unrestricted navigation as the first phase of negotiations with Iran. He added that a second phase of talks would focus on Iran's nuclear programme, reiterating that Tehran "cannot have a nuclear weapon." However, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei has denied reports of any direct or indirect negotiations with Washington, maintaining that Tehran is not engaged in bilateral talks with the United States. (ANI)
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