Amid Iran foreign minister Abbas Araghchi’s Strait of Hormuz update comes a Chinese yuan report
Amid Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi saying the Strait of Hormuz was open to all countries except the United States and Israel, a report has emerged about another of Tehran’s considerations regarding the key trade and oil route.
According to a CNN report, Iran is considering allowing a limited number of oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, provided the oil cargo is traded in Chinese yuan. The report cited an unnamed senior Iranian official for the update.
According to the official cited in the report, the potential move comes as the Islamic Republic is working on a new plan to manage the flow of oil tankers through the Strait.
Hundreds of ships, including many Indian vessels, remain stranded in the narrow sea lane between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. This happened after the US and Israel launched strikes on Iranian soil on February 28, plunging the region into a war. Follow LIVE updates here.
The US dollar has been the go-to currency for oil trade since the Richard Nixon administration in the 1970s, when it signed the Petrodollar pact with Saudi Arabia and other oil-producing nations. Since then, international oil has been traded almost entirely in dollars, except for sanctioned Russian oil, which is traded in Russian roubles or Chinese yuan.
China has been trying to dethrone the US dollar as the world’s reserve currency for the past several years by getting countries to buy oil in yuan, particularly in Saudi Arabia. But the yuan’s acceptance in the global market hasn’t taken off till now.
Iran says Strait of Hormuz open for all barring US and Israel
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the Strait of Hormuz is open and that the strategic route is only closed to the US and Israeli vessels.
“As a matter of fact, the Strait of Hormuz is open. It is only closed to the tankers and ships belonging to our enemies, to those who are attacking us and our allies. Others are free to pass,” Araghchi told MS Now in an interview on Saturday.
Speaking about the ongoing blockade of the narrow passageway, the Iranian minister said the route is closed due to “security concerns”.
“Of course, many of them prefer not to because of their security concerns. This has nothing to do with us. And at the same time, there are many tankers and ships that are passing through the Strait of Hormuz,” he said.
Araghchi said the Strait is not closed, adding, “It is only closed to American, Israeli ships and tankers and not to others.”
First Appeared on
Source link
