Tehran and Washington are stepping up their rhetoric over who controls the Strait of Hormuz.
The message from the Iranian side is clear: the Strait will only be opened once the United States accepts Tehran’s terms. Iran’s top security official, Mohsen Rezaei, is being unequivocal and issuing a warning.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
“The Strait of Hormuz will not be opened until the United States changes its behavior and accepts Iran’s terms.”
Mohsen Rezaei – Deputy National Security Advisor of Iran
Speaking to reporters while traveling to Ohio, reiterated that it is the United States that controls the straits, not Iran. At the same time, he warned that if Tehran challenges the United States, the American response will be extremely harsh. “They’ve been lying
to me constantly. We have complete control of the Strait of Hormuz right now. We have a country that was the bully of the Middle East for 50–51 years—referring to Iran. But it is no longer the bully of the Middle East.”
Donald Trump – President of
the United States The tension, however, is not limited to statements.
The U.S. military announced just tonight that American forces fired on a Panamanian-flagged ship in the Gulf of Oman. CENTCOM states here that the vessel attempted to circumvent the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports.
A U.S. Navy helicopter fired two Hellfire missiles to disable the guidance system of a Panama-flagged cargo ship, which ignored repeated warnings to stop violating the naval blockade imposed by the U.S. on Iranian ports. To date, U.S. forces have forced 55 commercial vessels to change course, while they have disabled three others that allegedly attempted to violate the blockade.
Shipping sources cited by Reuters say the ship was struck off the coast of Pakistan while sailing in the Gulf of Oman.
The Revolutionary Guards have declared their willingness to conduct military operations far from Iran’s borders.
“We must be able to expand operations into hostile territory and carry out missions far from our homeland. These are the hallmarks of an offensive doctrine that must be adopted.”
Mohsen Rezaei—Senior Advisor to the Revolutionary
Guards
Qatar expresses optimism regarding the outcome of the talks between Iran and Oman.
““Our main priority here is to reopen the strait, maintain the ceasefire, and ensure that we are in a position to move forward with negotiations.”
Majid Al Ansari – Spokesperson for the Qatari
Ministry of Foreign Affairs Tehran emphasizes that management of the straits falls exclusively under Iran’s jurisdiction.
Ceasefire Extension
According to Pakistani sources cited by Anadolu, the United States and Iran are reported to have agreed to extend the ceasefire for another 60 days. Iran denies that talks on an extension are underway.
Pakistan appears to be playing the role of mediator, attempting to keep the lines of communication open between the two sides.Amid the escalating tensions, Iranian Foreign Minister Arachchi and Iranian President Pezeskian met in Tehran with representatives from Pakistan.
Watch Evangelos Agapios’s report:
