Iran has exempted merchant vessels from India, China, Iraq and Qatar from restrictions on navigating the Strait of Hormuz, an influential Iranian lawmaker has said, adding that the arrangement is intended to serve Tehran's interests and facilitate the import of medicines from India.
Amir Hayat-Moghaddam, deputy chairman of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy committee, said ships from the four countries could pass through the strategic waterway without being intercepted by the United States.
“We have currently exempted India, China, Iraq and Qatar from transit restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz. Ships from these countries pass freely, and the Americans do not intercept them either,” Hayat-Moghaddam told the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA) in an interview on Tuesday.
He said the exemptions reflected specific interests Iran sought to protect in its relations with the four countries. Tehran was facilitating the movement of Indian vessels to enable the procurement of medicines from India, while the exemption for Chinese ships was intended to secure Beijing's political support.
However, the arrangement does not mean that all four countries enjoy identical financial terms. Hayat-Moghaddam said Iran collects transit fees from Indian and Chinese vessels but allows Qatari ships to pass without charges. He did not specify whether Iraqi vessels are also required to pay.
India's energy supplies remain exposed to Hormuz disruption
The Strait of Hormuz is a critical route for India's energy imports. Although the country imports nearly 90% of its crude oil requirements, around 30% of those imports currently pass through the waterway.
The dependence was considerably higher in the past, when the strait accounted for about 70% of India's crude oil imports. New Delhi has since diversified its sources, increasing purchases from Russia, the United States, West Africa and Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) following the start of the West Asia conflict.
India remains heavily dependent on the route for other energy supplies. Around 90% of its liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) imports transit the Strait of Hormuz, while more than half of its liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports from Qatar and the UAE are transported through the waterway. The passage is also important for India's fertiliser imports.
Following Iran's decision to close the strait and restrict merchant shipping, India has repeatedly called for the unimpeded movement of energy supplies and respect for freedom of navigation through international waterways.
Located between Iran and Oman, the Strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most important maritime chokepoints. It accounts for almost 25% of global seaborne oil supplies originating in West Asian countries, making any disruption a concern for energy-importing nations.
EU flags Iranian screening and toll system for ships
Hayat-Moghaddam's remarks come amid continuing restrictions on commercial shipping through the strait. The European Union has said that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy has introduced a system requiring vessels to provide identification documents and details of their cargo and destination before being allowed to pass.
Under the arrangement described by the EU, the information is passed to Iran's Hormozgan Provincial Command, which screens vessels and determines whether they can transit the waterway, in some cases after payment of tolls. In June, the EU imposed restrictive measures against the command and two individuals over actions it said threatened freedom of navigation.
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has also raised concerns about the risks faced by commercial vessels and their crews. In August, it said at least 70 attacks on international shipping had been verified between the start of the conflict in February and August, resulting in the deaths of 19 seafarers.
The IMO subsequently reported that the number of verified attacks had risen to 80 by September 16, with at least 22 seafarers killed in incidents in and around the strait.
Fifteen seafarers are among the 24 Indians reported killed so far in the West Asia conflict, highlighting the risks faced by Indian maritime workers amid the disruption to shipping in the region.
The exemptions announced by Hayat-Moghaddam offer some clarity on Iran's treatment of vessels from four countries, but the lawmaker did not provide details of the full terms governing their passage or indicate whether the arrangement would be extended to other nations.