Tehran has lifted restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz for Iraq, an Iranian military spokesman said, Bloomberg reports.
“Brotherly Iraq is exempt from any restrictions we have imposed in the Strait of Hormuz“, the statement said.
The decision could affect global oil supplies amid the ongoing conflict in the region. The agency estimates that this could help resume exports of up to 3 million barrels of oil per day. Iraq is OPEC's second-largest oil producer after Saudi Arabia.
However, the practical effect will depend on the willingness of shipping companies to enter the strait amid the ongoing risks, the article says. It remains unclear whether the relief applies to all Iraqi exports or only to Iraqi-flagged vessels, and how it will be implemented, the publication points out.
Amid the fighting and increasing pressure from the United States, traffic through the strait has gradually begun to recover, but remains significantly below pre-war levels, according to Bloomberg, when about a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supplies passed through it.
In the early weeks of the war, Iraq was forced to sharply reduce exports - in March they fell by approximately 97% to 99,000 barrels per day. The agency writes that the main supplies were transported by pipeline through Turkey to the port of Ceyhan.
Tehran's decision to open the strait to Iraqi vessels may allow for a partial restoration of sea supplies, but constraints such as a shortage of tankers and uncertainty about increasing fuel production remain, the publication notes.
After the start of the US-Israeli military operation, Tehran announced the suspension of cargo shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. However, the authorities said that the strait remains open to all ships, except those associated with "enemies of Iran" and announced that they had begun charging $ 2 million for tanker transit.
According to sources of NBC News, Washington is considering seizing Iranian ports. However, as The New York Times reported, Russia, China and France are opposing a UN Security Council resolution that would allow the use of force to open the Strait of Hormuz.