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4w ago

Iran Lets Select Chinese-Linked Ships Through Hormuz as Trump and Xi Back Keeping the Strait Open

The selective openings underscore Tehran’s case-by-case control of a corridor still closed to most traffic.

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U.S. CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper testifies before the Senate Armed Services Committee on "The Posture of the U.S. Central Command and U.S. Africa Command in Review" on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 14, 2026. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
Cargo ships in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026./File Photo

Overview

  • Iran allowed a limited group of Chinese-linked vessels to transit the Strait of Hormuz under its own “management protocols” starting Wednesday night, Iranian state outlets and Fars reported.
  • At Thursday’s Beijing summit, the White House said President Trump and President Xi agreed the strait must stay open for energy flows, while Trump said Xi offered to help and would not provide Iran with military equipment.
  • The waterway remains risky, with UKMTO reporting unauthorized boarding of a ship off the UAE and India confirming an Indian-flagged cargo vessel sank after a suspected missile or drone strike near Oman.
  • US Central Command said Thursday it has redirected 70 commercial ships and disabled four to enforce the American blockade on traffic to and from Iranian ports, signaling that broad access is still curtailed.
  • Iran says the IRGC oversees the western strait and the navy the east, is vetting transits through a proposed authority that can bar “enemy” vessels, and claims control could generate major new revenue in a chokepoint that once carried about one-fifth of global oil and LNG.