The foreign ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries intend to meet with their Iranian counterpart on Monday, in Oman, to seek an agreement on maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz. The Financial Times reported that Iran and Oman are finalizing an interim pact that provides for the establishment of a corridor for commercial ships to transit through the strait, whereby vessels would enter through Iranian waters and exit mainly through the sultan's zone.
For Iran and Oman, the goal is to have the Gulf Cooperation Council join the agreement, in an attempt to use it as a means to get the United States to suspend the blockade on Iranian ports. On the other hand, countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain seek to ensure that any pact reached is temporary, but allows ships to enter and exit while negotiating the future status of the strait.
The meeting, mediated by Oman, would be the first encounter between the main foreign affairs officials of the Gulf countries and a senior Iranian representative since the United States and Israel initiated the war against the Islamic Republic on February 28. Tehran responded by blocking the strait, through which a fifth of world oil production previously passed. The six GCC countries believe the temporary pact can serve to reduce hostilities between the United States and Iran.
The Sultanate of Oman, whose territorial waters encompass the Strait of Hormuz and which has sought to maintain a neutral position during the war, has been negotiating with Iran for several weeks on the establishment of a possible passage corridor. The urgency to reach an agreement increased after Houthi forces from Yemen, allies of Tehran, consolidated their presence near the Bab el-Mandeb strait, another strategic trade route, which caused the price of oil to exceed 107 dollars per barrel.
