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Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, announced that his country intends to establish a "restricted zone" outside the Strait of Hormuz in the coming days, in the latest step by Tehran amid the escalating military and economic confrontation with the United States.
Rezaei told Iranian state television on Sunday that the area would start from the blockade line imposed by the US Navy, and would include parts of the Gulf.
He added that any ship entering the new zone would be included on Iran's "sanctions list," without clarifying the nature of the measures that Tehran might take against ships that violate the restrictions.
Rezaei also said that the Strait of Hormuz is “completely closed and under the control of the Iranian Armed Forces*,” a characterization that contradicts the American position that says the movement of oil tankers continues through the strategic waterway.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Sunday that more than nine million barrels of oil cross the Strait daily, adding that alternative supply methods raise the volume of flows to the equivalent of about two-thirds of the levels that were recorded before the outbreak of the current confrontation.
Under normal circumstances, about a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supplies pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which makes any disruption to navigation through it have an impact on global energy markets.
Rezaei's statements come at a time when the United States has intensified its pressure on Iran through a naval blockade targeting its oil exports, in addition to tightening the sanctions imposed on it.
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The US Central Command said that its forces struck three Iranian oil tankers on Saturday, after the Iranian Revolutionary Guard launched ballistic missiles towards two US Navy ships.
The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, warned on Sunday that any new attack on Iran’s interests or security would face, in his words, a “faster, more severe and more painful” response.
The exchange of strikes has renewed in recent weeks after military operations declined during most of August, at a time when diplomatic efforts made little progress to revive the ceasefire that was initially reached in June.
Economic pressures inside Iran
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The military escalation coincides with increasing economic pressure inside Iran, with a decline in oil exports and difficulty in accessing foreign currencies in light of the US blockade and sanctions.
The Iranian government announced on Sunday that it would double the price of gasoline purchased using gas station cards, starting September 8, while keeping the prices of subsidized rations unchanged.
Government spokeswoman Fatima Mohajerani said that the price of a liter of gasoline purchased with station cards will rise from 50,000 riyals to 100,000 riyals.
Car owners will still be able to purchase 60 liters per month at a price of 15,000 riyals per liter, in addition to 50 liters at a price of 35,000 riyals, using personal fuel cards.
Fuel that exceeds this quota, or that is purchased by drivers who do not have an ID card, is sold at the higher price through gas station cards.
Mohajerani said that the rise in gasoline consumption has led to an imbalance between supply and demand, and that the government seeks to increase production, expand public transportation, and encourage the use of alternative types of fuel.
She added that 85 percent of Iranians can meet their gasoline needs within the subsidized monthly quota of 110 liters.
