Iran rejects US claims that Strait of Hormuz has reopened

Strait of Hormuz Crisis - Iran Threatens to Stop Gulf Oil Shipments

Iran rejects US claims that Strait of Hormuz has reopened

Iran has rejected claims by U.S. officials that the Strait of Hormuz has reopened, insisting that the strategic waterway remains closed to normal commercial shipping until its conditions are accepted.

The Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), the Iranian body responsible for maritime traffic through the waterway, said repeated statements from Washington did not change the situation.

“Claims and repeated posts by U.S. officials that the Strait of Hormuz is no longer blocked do not change the reality,” the authority said in a post on X.

The PGSA maintained that the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked and will not be reopened until Iran’s conditions are accepted.

The latest development followed a claim by U.S. President Donald Trump that the United States had “total control” of the strategic waterway and would maintain that control.

Trump said in a post on Truth Social that the U.S. naval blockade around Iran had created a “wall of steel” and suggested that Tehran lacked the ability to challenge the American military presence.

Iran has rejected the assertion, with its officials continuing to maintain that Tehran controls passage through the waterway.

The dispute comes amid an ongoing confrontation between the United States and Iran, with Washington maintaining a naval blockade of Iranian ports while Tehran has restricted most shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

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U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Washington could maintain the naval blockade of Iran indefinitely by rotating military vessels in and out of the region. The United States says the blockade is intended to restrict Iranian shipping while allowing non-Iranian vessels to pass.

Iranian officials, however, have said the Strait of Hormuz will not fully reopen unless the United States changes its position and accepts Tehran’s demands.

Iran’s newly appointed Supreme National Security Council secretary, Mohsen Rezaei, said the United States must end the war, address Iran’s frozen assets and support an end to hostilities across the region, including in Lebanon and Gaza.

Rezaei also said other Iranian demands had been communicated to Washington through mediators.

Meanwhile, Iran and Oman are discussing a possible arrangement for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. However, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said any agreement between Tehran and Muscat on a new route would be separate from the question of reopening the strait itself.

That distinction is significant because reports earlier this month suggested that Iran and Oman were close to an arrangement that could facilitate commercial shipping through the waterway. Reuters reported that the proposed deal would not, by itself, lead to the reopening of the strait, as Iran has tied the move to broader issues involving the U.S. blockade and the war.

Despite Washington’s claim of control and Tehran’s insistence that the waterway remains blocked, vessels have continued to move through the Strait of Hormuz in limited numbers.

According to shipping data reported by Reuters, nine commodity vessels transited the strait on Thursday, compared with five the previous day. However, the figure remained below the August average of about 12 vessels a day. Most of the vessels that passed through used routes controlled by Iran.

The current traffic levels remain dramatically below normal.

The disruption has forced energy companies and traders to explore alternative arrangements. Reuters reported that TotalEnergies’ trading arm, Totsa, was offering Iraqi crude for loading at locations outside the Strait of Hormuz as buyers remained reluctant to send vessels to terminals inside the waterway because of security concerns.

The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most important energy shipping routes, connecting the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.

Any prolonged disruption threatens the movement of crude oil, petroleum products and liquefied natural gas from major energy producers in the Gulf to international markets.

The continuing restrictions have therefore raised concerns over global oil supplies, shipping costs and energy prices, particularly as the United States and Iran remain unable to reach a lasting agreement.

The crisis has also affected financial markets. Reuters reported that Gulf stock markets were mixed amid concerns over the prolonged disruption, while Brent crude remained elevated as investors assessed the risk of further escalation.

The situation has become increasingly complicated by competing claims over who controls the waterway.

While President Donald Trump maintains that the United States has “total control” of the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian authorities insist that Washington has not taken control of the passage and that vessels must comply with Iranian requirements to transit the area.

For now, the conflicting claims have not translated into a return to normal shipping. Maritime traffic remains restricted, diplomatic efforts involving Iran, Oman and the United States remain unresolved, and Tehran continues to insist that the Strait of Hormuz will not be fully reopened until its conditions are met.