Oil company executives have approached the White House, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President J.D. Vance to protest Iran's decision to charge transit fees through the Strait of Hormuz, Politico reported, citing an industry representative.
The source noted that before the military conflict, transit fees through the waterway were not charged. He added that he believed “we won the war”.
According to Politico, the Trump administration responded to the complaints “not with a cold refusal”.
“More like “Yeah, okay, we'll take it into account,” the official said.
Politico also reported that a meeting between oil industry representatives and senior members of the US administration took place on the morning of April 8.
A fee for ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz would set a dangerous precedent for freedom of navigation around the world; the international community is unlikely to agree to such a fee.
This was stated by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in an interview with CNN.
According to Mitsotakis, the issue of free passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz directly concerns Greece. “We are one of the main “players” when it comes to ships owned and operated by Greece. I have always defended freedom of navigation – an issue of paramount importance for the future of the Strait of Hormuz. The Strait of Hormuz has always been free of shipping and I believe it should remain so in the future,“ the Prime Minister said. “I do not think the international community will be ready to accept Iran setting up a “toll collection point“ for every ship passing through the strait. I find this completely unacceptable,” Mitsotakis added.
“That is why I think we will have intensive negotiations,” the prime minister continued. “I think that ultimately we may need a separate international agreement on the Strait of Hormuz. There are historical precedents. But this agreement cannot – I repeat, cannot – include any fee that ships pay every time they pass through the Strait of Hormuz. This did not happen before the war and it cannot happen after its end.”
Mitsotakis stressed that no one has ever paid anything to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. “If something like this happens, we would set a very dangerous precedent for freedom of navigation around the world,” the prime minister said.