US President Donald Trump threatened on Sunday morning (June 21) to impose US transit fees on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz if the ongoing peace talks fail and a final agreement with Iran is not reached after the 60-day deadline for a ceasefire.
The threat came in a post on his platform "Truth Social" from the Camp David resort, including the features of the US position in three main points, where he explained that the transit will remain free for the entire 60-day period stipulated in the memorandum of understanding, and promised that he would impose fees "for and for Washington's benefit" immediately after the expiration of the deadline if the parties fail to conclude a final agreement.
He considered that these fees will be a "bill for services" provided by Washington as a "guardian angel" to the countries of the Middle East, with the aim of compensating for the military costs they incurred in protecting sea lanes and securing power lines, he said.
Iran responds to Trump's threats
Iran's Foreign Ministry, through its spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, announced its implicit rejection of the US threat to impose transit fees in the Strait of Hormuz, stressing that the management of the waterway is a "sovereign issue" for Tehran and the countries of the region.
Baghaei stressed Iran's full sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz, describing the corridor as "vital to Iran's national security" and cannot be subject to unilateral decisions by external powers and that Iran is the authority to impose any future fees for the services it provides to secure navigation.
The spokesman explained that Tehran will take "all necessary measures" to ensure the safe passage of ships in coordination with the Sultanate of Oman and the countries of the region, and in accordance with international law, away from the concept of "American protection" that Trump has talked about.
Iran's Foreign Ministry linked the current measures, including temporary free transit, to Washington's commitment to the 60-day truce clauses stipulated in the framework memorandum of understanding, warning that any U.S. withdrawal would "bring the situation back to ground zero."
Vance to Switzerland after the arrival of the Iranian delegation
CNN reported that US Vice President J.D. Vance left Joint Base Andrews late on Saturday evening for Switzerland to participate in negotiations with Iran in the mountain resort of Burgenstock, while Iranian state television announced the arrival of the Iranian negotiating delegation in the Swiss city of Zurich.
The U.S. delegation includes three main pillars, led by Vance as head of the delegation, announcing before leaving the Andrews base that he would spend "a day or two" in Switzerland trying to make tangible progress on two key files: Iran's nuclear program and the stabilization of the ceasefire in Lebanon. Alongside him, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff is managing the complex technical negotiations, following his early arrival in Switzerland to oversee the drafting of economic and nuclear items. Jared Kushner, an adviser to President Donald Trump, is involved in the field to arrange the executive aspects and security and economic agreements related to the negotiation track.
On the Iranian side, a high-level delegation known as MINAP 168 led by Speaker of Parliament Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, and Central Bank Governor Abdolnasser Hemmati is attending, and these talks are being held under the joint auspices of Pakistan and Qatar, with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and army chief Asim Munir co-supervising the sessions, along with a Qatari diplomatic delegation managing the complexities between Washington and Tehran.
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