Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has warned of a “new chapter” in the fight for control over the Strait of Hormuz, as the waterway remains closed to the vast majority of shipping traffic. In a statement read by an anchor on Iranian state television, Khamenei vowed to eliminate “the enemy's abuses” of the waterway and asserted that “new management of the strait will bring comfort and progress for the benefit of all nations of the region.”
Khamenei also stressed that Iran will continue to guard its “modern technological capacities,” including its nuclear and missile capabilities. He told viewers that “by the will and power of God, the bright future of the Persian Gulf region will be a future without America.” The remarks signal that Iran has no intention of relinquishing control of the Strait of Hormuz and that Tehran intends to implement new legal frameworks for managing the waterway.
The intervention follows US President Donald Trump's warning that the US blockade of Iranian ports could remain in place for months. With Iran and the United States now implementing dual blockades of the strait, shipping traffic through the area — Iranian or otherwise — has come to a virtual standstill. The shutdown continues to weigh on global oil and LNG supply, while freight and war-risk insurance premiums remain elevated.
Trump recently rejected an Iranian proposal, conveyed via Pakistan, that would have reopened the strait by imposing tolls on tankers while excluding talks on Iran's nuclear program and enriched-uranium stocks. Tehran has repeatedly insisted that any plan to reopen the waterway must allow it to charge fees for transits, hardening the gulf between the two positions and reinforcing the standoff over the world's most strategic oil chokepoint.
Key Takeaways:
1. Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said Tehran will not relinquish control of the Strait of Hormuz.
2. Iran plans to implement new legal frameworks for managing the waterway.
3. Khamenei stressed Iran will keep guarding its nuclear and missile capabilities.
4. The US blockade of Iranian ports could last for months; transits through Hormuz are virtually halted.
5. Trump rejected an Iranian proposal that would impose tolls on tankers while excluding nuclear talks.
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