Iran says China to receive “special considerations” in new Hormuz fee arrangements

Iran’s ambassador to China said ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz would face new service fees, while China and other “friendly” countries would receive “special considerations” in how those charges are applied. Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli said Iran and Oman are working on new arrangements for the waterway that would cover security of passage, supervision of vessel traffic and environmental impacts, and insisted the charges would be service fees rather than a toll. The comments come as a temporary Iran-US deal signed last month allowed commercial vessels to pass free of charge for 60 days, leaving policy after that window uncertain. The US has said any final agreement must not allow Iran to levy transit fees. The strait carried about a fifth of global crude oil and liquefied natural gas shipments in peacetime and was nearly shut during the war that began in late February, before the US later imposed a naval blockade on Iran’s southern ports in April. Iran and Oman, which sit on opposite sides of the waterway, have formed a joint committee to determine how the strategic channel will be managed.