STRAIT OF HORMUZ — Iran plans to charge service fees for vessels using the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's ambassador to China, Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli, announced Saturday in Beijing during the World Peace Forum.

Rahmani Fazli stated, "As a country where the Hormuz is part of its territorial waters, we will definitely charge service fees." He denied that the charges would act as a toll. The ambassador added, "These new arrangements will be concerning guaranteeing the security of passage through the Straits of Hormuz, supervision of the passage of the vessels… and also guaranteeing and dealing with the environmental consequences of the massive number of ships."

Iran and the United States signed a Memorandum of Understanding in June 2026, under which Iran agreed to guarantee safe passage through the strait for an initial 60 days without imposing tolls or fees. US President Donald Trump claimed in late June that Iran had promised there would be no "CHARGES OF ANY KIND BEING SOUGHT OR RECEIVED BY IRAN ON SHIPS TRAVELING THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ."

Washington accused Tehran of violating the agreement after what it described as hostile actions by Iran against ships traversing the Strait of Hormuz outside the route Iran had approved. Iran and Oman have formed a joint committee to manage the Strait of Hormuz. Rahmani Fazli said that Iran is working in "collaboration and cooperation" with Muscat on these "new arrangements."

Military historian Lynette Nusbacher commented on the public statements, saying, "What we are seeing is negotiating positions being set forth with public statements rather than being put across a table in a room." Nusbacher also stated, "The American version of this is designed to support the fiction that there is already a robust, long-term agreement in place, that the memorandum of understanding is something other than yet another shonky ceasefire."