Overview
- Iran and Oman announced on Wednesday that they have agreed the geographic coordinates for a proposed shipping corridor through the Strait of Hormuz and that a joint statement and draft agreement are in final review.
- Senior sources and Reuters reporting say the draft would place inbound commercial traffic under Iranian authority while the role for outbound vessels remains under negotiation, and the deal reportedly awaits final approval from Iran’s Supreme Leader.
- A major sticking point is transit charges: Iranian officials have sought fees in the mid single digits of cargo value, Oman has proposed lower charges, and the United States has said it will not accept any arrangement that gives Iran effective control or allows mandatory fees.
- The International Chamber of Commerce and UN partners have circulated a neutral alternative modeled on the Black Sea Grain Initiative that would run vessel registration, inspections and verification from a Joint Coordination Center in Salalah, with Oman’s Salalah Port Authority conducting inspections observed by UN monitors.
- Fighting and attacks on commercial shipping, including Houthi missile claims and recent explosions near trade routes, continue to make the corridor insecure, leaving any reopening fragile and likely to take further diplomatic steps and security guarantees before shipping resumes at scale.