US President Donald Trump said on Monday that oil tankers are again exiting the Strait of Hormuz, following a peace deal, but uncertainty persisted over whether Iran will keep imposing tolls on ships in the vital waterway.
Mediator Pakistan announced on Sunday that the United States and Iran had agreed to an “immediate and permanent termination” of military operations, but the text of their peace deal has yet to be released.
The deal is expected to be signed on Friday in Switzerland and be followed by further “technical” talks on a long-term agreement.
Trump said that with the signing, the Strait of Hormuz — a vital waterway for Gulf energy exports — would be reopened and a US naval blockade of Iran would be lifted.
On Monday, while flying to a G7 summit in France, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that “ships are starting to move, many loaded up with Oil, out of the Strait of Hormuz.”
“They are going along the Southern ‘Highway,’ which is totally safe, secure, and pristine,” he wrote, apparently referring to a shipping route nearer to Oman in the narrow waterway.
Trump said last week that the US military had secretly helped more than 200 commercial ships carrying over 100 million barrels of oil pass through the Strait of Hormuz since May.
“There are other areas of travel, also!!!” he posted Monday, without further details.
Iran, in response to the US-Israeli strikes that began on February 28, effectively halted traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
Closure of the strait, which normally carries around a fifth of global oil and gas exports, caused energy prices to spike around the world.
Iran later moved to set up a payment system for transiting ships.
– Toll-free? –
US Vice President JD Vance was asked on CNBC Monday morning if there was an understanding with Iran that the strait would reopen toll-free for just an initial period of 60 days or indefinitely under the deal.
“Our expectation is that the strait is going to be opened in a toll-free way for the long term, and that’s the sort of thing that we’re going to figure out in these technical negotiations,” he said.
Iran’s foreign ministry meanwhile said on Monday that the deal would allow it to charge maritime service fees on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, rather than imposing “tolls.”
Uncertainty also surrounds other key aspects of the deal, including Iran’s access to its frozen funds and relief from international and US sanctions.
Vance did not give specifics on the terms of the relief Monday, but emphasized that it would be dependent on a “verification process.”
“We say to the Iranians, you are welcome to have access to an unsanctioned economy, you’re welcome to be reinvited into the world economy, but only if you honor the commitments that you make in this agreement.”
“You don’t have access to the money to rebuild that nuclear program,” Vance said, “but if you’re willing to give up that program long term, if you’re willing to accept the inspections and verification regime that’s necessary to give us the confidence you’re never going to have a nuclear weapon, then we want you to be a prosperous country, and we will reinvite you into the community of nations.”
Asked who would be representing the United States at the signing ceremony, Vance said there will be a “full spectrum of representatives.”
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