Iran warns challenges to Strait of Hormuz authority will escalate tensions

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned Sunday that any attempt to adopt “new or separate arrangements” for managing the Strait of Hormuz would delay the waterway’s reopening and increase tensions, a dispute The Wall Street Journal reported threatened the key achievement of President Donald Trump’s preliminary peace deal.

“Any attempt to adopt new or separate arrangements compared to what is underway by the Islamic Republic of Iran will only lead to more complicated situations and delays in the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and will increase the tensions, as we witnessed in the past two nights,” Araghchi said during a visit to Iraq, according to SBS News.

He warned that any unilateral military or political action by outside powers could further escalate the conflict and delay efforts to restore normal maritime traffic, the Sunday Guardian reported.

The comments came less than 48 hours after President Donald Trump signed a memorandum of understanding with Iran to end the conflict and restore freedom of navigation through the strait, gCaptain reported. The Trump administration has said the agreement does not grant Iran control over the strategic waterway.

In a joint statement issued after Gulf-U.S. talks, regional leaders and Washington demanded the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, calling unrestricted freedom of navigation “essential” for global stability, Al Jazeera reported. The statement rejected “any tolls, fees, or attempts to assert control” over the strait and welcomed an international plan to evacuate more than 11,000 stranded seafarers from the area.

Iran has asserted authority over the Strait of Hormuz throughout the conflict, warning that safe passage requires coordination with Tehran, The Hill reported. The Times of India reported that Araghchi warned any challenge to Iran’s control over the strait would escalate tensions even as efforts continue to secure peace. Fighting and Iranian assertions of authority over the waterway have persisted since the conflict began, according to the Journal.