Iran Envoy Says Friendly States May Get Hormuz Fee Breaks

AFP and Bloomberg pickups reported that Iranian Ambassador Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli told the World Peace Forum in Beijing on July 4 that Iran plans new Strait of Hormuz service fees while giving friendly states special consideration. The reports say Tehran is coordinating arrangements with Oman and frames the charges as covering safe passage, supervision and environmental costs, while Washington and Gulf Arab states reject Iranian or Omani fees for the waterway. Bloomberg also reported that at least eight ships turned back between July 3 and July 4 as reopening remained complicated. Israel should read the remarks as a warning that Tehran is trying to monetize and politicize a global chokepoint after the U.S.-Israeli war, so any Iran deal must preserve free navigation and deny Iran leverage over energy traffic.