Iran has granted Iraq special permission to transit the Strait of Hormuz despite ongoing restrictions that have effectively blocked nearly all nations from using the vital waterway since February.
An oil tanker carrying Iraqi petroleum entered the strait on Sunday, a day after Tehran formally announced the exemption. Ship tracking data showed the tanker Ocean Thunder, which loaded its cargo in early March at the Basra terminal, was heading to Malaysia after entering via a narrow northern path between two Iranian islands.
Devastating Impact on Iraqi Output
The exemption comes as Iraq has suffered massive economic losses from the strait closure. The countrys oil output has plummeted from approximately 3.5 million barrels per day to about 1.3 million barrels per day, while exports have fallen to roughly 800,000 barrels per day.
Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters which coordinates operations between the Iranian army and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, confirmed on Saturday that Iraq is exempted from maritime traffic restrictions, which he said would now only apply to enemy states.
Iraqi President Nizar Amidi said there is facilitation for some ships carrying Iraqi oil in the Strait of Hormuz, adding that Iraq does not have a national carrier for transporting oil. Irans state-run IRNA news agency confirmed that a number of Iraqi oil tankers have been permitted to transit, though details on the arrangement remain sparse.
Strait Remains Essentially Blocked
Since Iran blocked the strait on February 28 in retaliation for US and Israeli strikes, the waterway through which roughly one-fifth of the worlds oil supply passes in peacetime has seen a 94 percent decline in shipping traffic. The closure has sent crude prices surging and triggered warnings about global energy supply disruptions.
Iran has been asserting control over what was considered an international waterway, establishing the Persian Gulf Strait Authority and imposing transit fees on the few vessels daring to pass. The arrangement has drawn sharp criticism from Washington and Gulf Arab states, which say they will not agree to Iran charging for passage.
The Ocean Thunder crossing represents one of the highest-capacity tankers to transit the strait since the conflict began, carrying approximately one million barrels of crude oil.
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