Iran and Oman agree Hormuz shipping route map as bulk carrier hit

Iran's foreign ministry announced on August 15 that Tehran and Muscat have agreed on a route map for the Strait of Hormuz. Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei confirmed the agreement after what he called 'positive progress' over three weeks of talks, despite what he described as US obstruction. The deal sets specific coordinates for shipping lanes through the strait. A further phase of talks was still needed, Baghaei said, to work out transit fee arrangements and security measures.

The strait remained dangerous on the same day. The UK Maritime Trade Operations reported that a projectile struck the hull of a bulk carrier transiting the waterway. The crew was unharmed. Two ADNOC tankers had been struck while transiting the strait on Thursday, and another was hit Friday evening, according to the UKMTO.

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz was running at around 17% of its pre-conflict average last week. Iran effectively closed the strait to most traffic after the US-Iran war began in late February. The Iran-Oman arrangement is bilateral, covering the two coastal states that border the waterway. The United States is not party to it.