Trump proposes securing Strait of Hormuz in 'joint venture' with Iran
Kyiv • UNN
Donald Trump is considering creating a joint venture with Iran for shipping security. Despite the truce, hundreds of vessels are stranded in the Persian Gulf.
President Donald Trump suggested that the United States could be involved in ensuring the security of the Strait of Hormuz in a "joint venture" with Iran. Meanwhile, two vessels have already passed through the Strait of Hormuz since the ceasefire, but hundreds remain trapped, UNN reports with reference to CNN.
Details
"We're thinking about doing it as a joint venture," Trump told ABC News when asked about Tehran charging a fee for passage through the strait. "It's a way to keep it safe — also to protect it from a lot of other people."
It is unclear whether Iran would be open to this plan, amid expectations that negotiations will continue during the two-week ceasefire.
Earlier this week, Trump said he would prefer the US, not Iran, to charge fees for vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
First passages through the strait after the truce
Meanwhile, according to the latest MarineTraffic data, at least two vessels have safely passed through the Strait of Hormuz since the announcement of a ceasefire between Iran, the United States, and Israel.
This is just a drop in the ocean of the huge backlog of vessels stuck in the Persian Gulf. MarineTraffic reported on Wednesday that hundreds of vessels remain in the region, including 426 tankers, 34 liquefied petroleum gas tankers, and 19 liquefied natural gas vessels.
At 8:44 UTC on Wednesday, the Greek bulk carrier NJ Earth crossed the strait, according to tracking data. Approximately two hours earlier, the Liberian-flagged bulk carrier Daytona Beach reached the Gulf of Oman, MarineTraffic reported.
Both vessels appeared to be following a route that passes by the Iranian island of Larak, which Lloyd's List Intelligence previously reported as a checkpoint used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to control access to the strait.
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Oil prices plummeted after the ceasefire announcement, but shipping experts expressed uncertainty about a quick resumption of traffic through the key chokepoint, through which about 20% of the world's oil supply normally passes. According to the UN Conference on Trade and Development, about 130 vessels passed through this waterway daily before the war.
"How this transition will be carried out remains to be seen, but the ceasefire must be accompanied by realism, as a quick return to normal is unlikely," Peter Sand, chief analyst at Xeneta, a freight analytics company, told CNN. "The limited timeframe and fragile ceasefire increase the risk for any carrier returning vessels to the Persian Gulf that they could become trapped again if the security situation deteriorates again."
Macron's statement
As Reuters notes, French President Emmanuel Macron said that about 15 countries plan to facilitate the resumption of traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil supply normally passes, after the announcement of a ceasefire between the United States and Iran.
About 15 countries are currently mobilized and participating in planning under French leadership to ensure the implementation of this purely defensive mission in coordination with Iran to facilitate the resumption of traffic
Macron said he welcomed the ceasefire between Iran and the United States, but added that the situation in Lebanon remains critical and called for Lebanon to be included in the agreement. France maintains close ties with Lebanon, a former protectorate. "In this context, we want to be sure that the ceasefire fully extends to Lebanon," Macron said.