Iran Warns US Against Violating Maritime Deal Amid Strait of Hormuz Tensions

Iran will not allow the US to violate the terms of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with impunity, Tehran’s top negotiator Mohammad Ghalibaf has said.

On Saturday, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced that the Strait of Hormuz will be closed to all shipping until the US ends its “illegal interventions” in the region. The move follows the third wave of American strikes against Iran this week.

Tehran allowed traffic through the key waterway, which accounts for some 20% global crude trade, as part of the MoU, which was signed by the sides on June 17 in order to extend the ceasefire and allow for more time to reach the final settlement of the conflict.

In a post on X on Sunday, Ghalibaf, who is also the speaker of the Iranian parliament, warned the US that “the era of one-sided deals is OVER.”

“We told you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking,” he wrote.

The post included a screenshot of one of the points of the MoU, stating that it’s up to Tehran “to make arrangements using its best efforts for the safe passage of commercial vessels” through the Strait of Hormuz.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said earlier that it launched its latest bombardment of Iran after Tehran “blatantly” attacked the Cyprus-flagged container ship GFS Galaxy in the strait.

The IRGC maintains that it targets such commercial vessels because they are traversing the waterway via a shipping lane near the Omani coast, which was “illegally designating” by Washington, instead of taking the route mapped out by Tehran.

Iran later retaliated for the US strikes by hitting the American military facilities in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman with drones and missiles, according to the IRGC.

Among other things, a command center and hangars housing US MQ-9 Reaper drones at Prince Hassan Air Base in Jordan and a refueling facility for US aircraft carriers at the port of Duqm in Oman were struck, it said.

“The enemy should know that the continuation of its aggression will bring even more crushing responses. Bring it on, and we will fight back,” the IRGC warned.