Iran signals defiance as Trump fumes over Strait of Hormuz strikes
East Africa News
Iranian officials insist Tehran will not give up control over the waterway as US attacks and the withdrawal of sanctions waivers threaten fragile truce.
Tehran, Iran – Iran has insisted on exercising control in the Strait of Hormuz after another flare-up of attacks that prompted United States President Donald Trump to lash out against Iranian leaders.
Trump, in the Turkish capital, Ankara, for a NATO summit, told reporters he considers the memorandum of understanding (MoU) that Tehran and Washington signed last month to be over and called Iranian authorities “sick” and “scum” after several ships were hit with drones in the waterway.
Regional Impact
The US military attacked southern Iran on Wednesday morning – 20 times harder than Iran’s strikes, according to Trump – and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Iranian army launched projectiles towards Bahrain and Kuwait while shooting down a US drone.
Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused Washington of violating provisions of the MoU dealing with the cessation of military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon, and parts of the agreement relating to respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.
It also condemned the US Department of the Treasury’s move to rescind waivers that allowed Iran to export its oil and get the revenues for 60 days. That waiver, along with the lifting of the US naval blockade of Iran’s southern ports, was the only immediate and tangible material benefit of the MoU for Iran.
Analysis
A similar but smaller set of incidents took place in late June, sparked by Iran’s efforts to prevent tankers and commercial vessels from transiting through the Strait of Hormuz along a US-backed route near Oman. However, at that time, the US did not withdraw the temporary sanctions waivers it had extended to Iran.
Differing interpretations of Article 5
At the heart of the dispute over the Strait of Hormuz is a difference in interpretation of Article 5 of the MoU. It states that Iran “will make arrangements using its best efforts for the safe passage of commercial vessels, with no charge for 60 days only, from the Persian Gulf to the Sea of Oman, and vice versa”.
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