Washington's top diplomat insisted Tuesday that the US would not accept any attempt to impose tolls or fees on Strait of Hormuz, the key waterway where the UN said it would begin evacuating thousands of sailors stranded by the Middle East war
The US and Iran have signed a preliminary deal to halt the war, and concluded a first round of talks in Switzerland as part of a 60-day negotiation period to settle outstanding issues like sanctions relief and the fate of Tehran's nuclear program.
An Iranian blockade that began early in the conflict choked off maritime traffic through the Hormuz strait -- sending global oil prices surging -- but crossings have begun to rise again since the US-Iran deal was inked.
Iran has repeatedly maintained it will retain control over the waterway, including on Tuesday, when it and Oman said in a joint statement that they would study the administration of the trade route and the costs to be charged for services provided, insisting on their sovereignty over the strait.
But US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, kicking off a regional tour, reiterated Washington's position that such an arrangement would be unacceptable.
"It's an international waterway. No country is allowed to charge tolls or fees on an international waterway," he said from Abu Dhabi, adding that he believed "all the countries in this region would agree".
Tehran's top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, had earlier insisted the Strait of Hormuz "will never return" to the pre-war status quo, despite the foes agreeing to set up communication lines to keep it open.
- Muscat meeting -
Oman and Iran agreed on Tuesday to press on with discussions about the future administration of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
In a joint statement issued after talks in Muscat, they said a joint working group involving their foreign ministries would be formed to continue the discussions and that they would consult other littoral states and relevant parties.
The move appears to implement a provision of the memorandum of understanding signed last week that calls for Iran to hold talks with Oman and other states on the future management of navigation and maritime services in the strait, a vital waterway for global oil supplies.
The agreement was announced following a visit by Speaker Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, who met Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq and held talks with Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi.
In the statement, Oman and Iran, the two states bordering the strait, reaffirmed their commitment to ensuring safe passage through the waterway in accordance with international law while underlining sovereignty over their territorial waters.
Since the start of the US-Israeli war against Iran in February, the strait has been largely closed to commercial shipping. The United States blockaded Iranian ports after Iran started effectively blocking the strait.
Oman and Iran reaffirmed their commitment to the strait being a secure and open route for international navigation and to promoting maritime safety, freedom of navigation and regional stability.
The head of the UN's International Maritime Organization, meanwhile, said it would begin evacuating more than 11,000 sailors stranded by the Hormuz blockade in cooperation with Iran, Oman and the United States, adding it had "secured the necessary safety guarantees".
Traffic through the strait on Monday reached the highest level since the start of the war, according to two maritime tracking platforms, representing just over 40 percent of the normal peacetime level of about 120 vessels per day.
