DUBAI: Oman has presented Iran with a new Gulf-backed proposal for the management of the Strait of Hormuz, including a voluntary fee mechanism for vessels using the strategic waterway, according to a Reuters report citing Gulf and Western diplomatic sources.
The proposal, backed by Gulf Arab states, envisions a joint management framework under which Iran would not exercise sole control over the strait.
Instead, ships would be asked to make voluntary contributions to help fund navigation services, environmental protection, and search-and-rescue operations.
A senior Iranian source told Reuters that Tehran has not yet responded to the Omani proposal. The proposed model is said to resemble the system used in the Strait of Malacca, where Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore invite voluntary contributions from shipping companies to support maritime safety and related services.
The proposal comes amid renewed tensions between Washington and Tehran. US President Donald Trump said talks with Iran were progressing positively but warned that airstrikes could resume if negotiations failed to produce a breakthrough. Iran, however, denied seeking to restart negotiations with the United States.
According to the report, the United States wants to restore the pre-conflict arrangement under which commercial vessels could pass through the Strait of Hormuz freely without paying fees. Iran, by contrast, has proposed jointly administering the waterway with Oman while collecting service charges from ships using the route.
Separately, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) foreign ministers held a virtual meeting to discuss the latest regional developments, including measures to strengthen cooperation on ensuring the safety and freedom of navigation through the strategic waterway.
Iran’s Joint Military Command also rejected a separate US-backed proposal under which compensation for damage to commercial shipping would be paid from frozen Iranian assets, according to Iranian state media.
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Tehran warned that any country or company accepting such payments would not be permitted by Iran’s armed forces to transit the Strait of Hormuz.
