Iran announced Monday it will establish a new “restricted zone” near the Strait of Hormuz, a move aimed at expanding its control over the vital maritime chokepoint. The announcement follows recent exchanges of fire between Iran and the United States over the weekend.
Mohsen Rezaei, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, stated Sunday that the exclusion zone would extend from the beginning of the U.S. blockade of Iran to other areas of the Gulf. According to Rezaei, any vessel entering this zone with the intent to pass through the Strait of Hormuz will be placed on a sanctions list.
Iran also plans to release maps for a new international shipping corridor that will lie within Iranian and Omani waters. Rezaei indicated that Iran will manage this corridor, and its opening is contingent on the U.S. ceasing "sabotage, threats and attacks on Iran."
The Islamic Republic faces significant economic pressure, with dwindling fuel reserves and a fresh wave of U.S. sanctions following months of U.S. bombing campaigns. On Saturday, U.S. forces attacked three Iranian oil tankers, including one near Iran's main oil export hub of Kharg Island, in retaliation for strikes by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on U.S. warships.
The Strait of Hormuz is a critical passage through which approximately one-fifth of the world's oil flowed during peacetime.
