Iran Says It Could Close Strait of Hormuz
(Bloomberg) -- Iran is capable of shutting the Strait of Hormuz -- a crucial choke-point for oil flows -- but doesn’t want to do it, the country’s foreign minister said.
"We certainly have the ability to do it, but we certainly don’t want to do it because the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf are our lifeline," Mohammad Javad Zarif said Wednesday in an interview with Bloomberg Television in New York. "It has to be secured. We play a big role in securing it, but it has to be secure for everybody."
About one-third of the world’s seaborne crude and fuels passed through the Strait of Hormuz last year, highlighting its key role in global oil markets. In May and June, six tankers were attacked in the region. While Iran has been blamed for attacks on merchant shipping, it has denied responsibility.
“It’s dangerous because it is very crowded,” said Zarif, who said the last time the area was this crowded, the U.S. shot down an Iranian plane with 290 passengers in 1988. “We feel the danger and that is why we want to avoid a dangerous escalation, but we cannot give up defending our country.”
Last week, the British Navy intervened to stop Iran from blocking a BP Plc oil tanker, a confrontation that occurred after British forces helped seize an oil tanker carrying Iranian oil off the southern tip of Spain on July 4. The U.K. say the tanker was stopped because it was headed to Syria.
The seizure was "piracy, pure and simple,” he said.
U.S. Central Command has been working on a plan to deter threats in the area and a strategy to safeguard shipping lanes will be unveiled at a joint briefing with the Defense Department Friday, Brian Hook, the U.S. special representative for Iran, said at an event Tuesday. He cautioned that any effort would need the support of other nations to be successful.
Geopolitical tensions in the region have escalated since the U.S. stepped up sanctions against the Islamic Republic over the last few months.
A small oil tanker that had gone missing in the Persian Gulf had technical difficulties and was towed into Iranian waters for repairs, an Iranian foreign ministry official said Tuesday.
--With assistance from David Marino and John Micklethwait.
To contact the reporter on this story:
Tina Davis in New York at tinadavis@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story:
David Marino at dmarino4@bloomberg.net
Pratish Narayanan
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.
- ExxonMobil Racks Up Discoveries in Guyana Block Eyed by Chevron
- Oil Market Sentiment Has Improved Significantly
- EU, US Eye Collaboration on Nuclear Materials
- EU Electricity Export to Ukraine Up 94 Percent in Two Years
- China Coal Output Falls for First Time since Government Ordered More
- USA Driving Activity to Increase to All-Time Highs
- BP Pulse Buys One of Europe's Largest Truck Stops
- UK CCUS Plans Outdated: Think Tank
- TC Energy to Sell Prince Rupert Gas Pipeline Project to First Nation
- I Squared Eyes Full Ownership of Europe Gas Storage Firm
- Norway Regulator Blasts Proposal to Halt New Oil and Gas Permits
- Chinese Mega Company Makes Major Oilfield Discovery
- EIA Drops 2024 Henry Hub Gas Price Forecast
- EIA and Standard Chartered Offer Up Latest Oil Price Predictions
- Red Sea Region Sees Another Watershed Incident
- Chevron Oil Project in Kazakhstan to Cost $48.5B
- OPEC Voices Encouragement after IEA Affirms Support for Oil Security
- Biden Govt Bares Strategy for Freight Charging, Hydrogen Fueling Infra
- Ukraine Hits Third Russian Refinery In Escalating Drone Strikes
- Rystad Looks at the Buzz Around White Hydrogen
- VIDEO: Missile Attack Kills Crew Transiting Gulf of Aden
- Norway Regulator Blasts Proposal to Halt New Oil and Gas Permits
- Chinese Mega Company Makes Major Oilfield Discovery
- What Is the Biggest Risk to Offshore Oil and Gas Personnel in 2024?
- Is Peak Oil Demand Close?
- Vessel Sinks in Red Sea After Missile Strike
- JP Morgan, Standard Chartered Reveal Latest Oil Price Forecasts
- Exxon Rights in Stabroek Do Not Apply to Hess Merger with Chevron: Hess
- Rystad Forecasts Net Production of Top Permian Producers in 2024
- Analysts Reveal Latest Oil Price Outlook Following OPEC+ Cut Extension