Oman and Iran have agreed to establish a joint working group to reach an agreement on the future management of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, according to a joint statement issued on Tuesday.
Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held talks in Muscat on Tuesday with Oman's Sultan Haitham and Foreign Minister Badr Al Busaidi.
“The Sultanate of Oman and the Islamic Republic of Iran, as the two coastal states bordering the Strait of Hormuz, affirm their commitment to ensuring safe passage through the Strait in accordance with the relevant provisions of international law,” the joint statement said.
Oman and Iran emphasised “their sovereignty and sovereign rights over their territorial waters in the Strait of Hormuz”, the statement added.
“The two sides agreed to continue dialogue on this matter through a joint working group between the two countries' foreign ministries to reach an agreement on the future management of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, the services to be provided in this regard, and the associated costs, in accordance with international standards,” it added.
“All arrangements related to the strait must fully respect the sovereignty and sovereign rights” of the two countries, it said.
Oman and Iran reiterated their commitment to maintaining the strait as a safe and open waterway for international navigation and emphasised the importance of continued co-operation to enhance maritime safety, freedom of navigation and regional stability.
They said they would hold discussions about the strait with the coastal states in the region and other relevant parties.
The strait is vital to energy exports from the Arabian Gulf. More than 20 per cent of global liquefied natural gas and crude oil passed through the waterway each day before the war between the US and Iran broke out on February 28.
Tehran agreed to keep the strait open after agreeing a deal with the US last week. That led to an increase in shipping traffic, with 25 vessels crossing the waterway on the first day of the agreement. At least 100 ships a day used to pass through the narrow channel before the war.
An Iranian military source told Fars news agency on Tuesday that a limited number of vessels are being allowed to pass through the strait each day in co-ordination with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Navy.
The source said the number of authorised vessels varies daily depending on conditions, after a period in which the strait had been closed and no transit permits issued due to “hostile actions by Israel and alleged US violations of a ceasefire agreement”.
US President Donald Trump claimed on Tuesday that a record 19 million barrels of oil had passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, hailing the development as a sign of improving global stability.
Writing on his Truth Social platform, Mr Trump added: “Oil prices are tumbling down, and the world is a much safer place.”
In a separate post, he said he had “agreed to allow the Hormuz Strait to remain open, with no further naval blockade”.
However, he said, US warships were “remaining in place should it be necessary to reinstitute the blockade, which seems, at this point, highly unlikely”.
The first round of talks between the US and Iran began on Sunday and concluded on Monday with both sides agreeing on a road map towards a permanent peace deal within 60 days. The US also announced a waiver until August 21 on sanctions, easing concerns over global oil and LNG supplies and pushing prices lower.
Two previously stranded supertankers passed through the strait on Tuesday and seven empty Qatar-linked liquefied natural gas tankers have entered in recent weeks, in an early sign that Gulf gas shipping could be resuming, ship-tracking data showed.
Flows had weakened before Monday's talks amid Mr Trump's threats to restart the war and Tehran's announcement that it had again shut the strait.
Supertanker VLCC Dubai Energy, chartered by Taiwanese state energy firm CPC and carrying two million barrels of Abu Dhabi and Saudi crude oil, exited the strait overnight and is sailing towards Kaohsiung, Taiwan, data from LSEG and Kpler showed. CPC did not respond to a request for comment.
Another VLCC, Universal Glory, chartered by South Korean refiner GS Caltex, also exited the strait on Tuesday with two million barrels of Saudi crude on board, the data showed.
More crude oil cargoes stranded in the Gulf since the start of the war are expected to make their way out now, analysts say. A growing number of sanctioned tankers have been crossing the strait to load and export Iranian oil after the US waived sanctions.
