"Proposal Emerges for Gulf Nations and Iran to Jointly Manage Strait of Hormuz"

The New York Times reported on July 19 (local time) that an idea has been proposed for Gulf nations and Iran to jointly manage the Strait of Hormuz—a flashpoint for military conflict between the U.S. and Iran—and collect a modest fee to reopen the waterway.

The newspaper reported that a report published this month by the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation, a London-based think tank, suggests that countries surrounding the Persian Gulf could view the waters as a regional common asset, imposing fees on oil tankers for the purpose of maintenance and upkeep.

The explanation is that this concept aligns with international law, satisfies the demands of the Iranian government, which asserts control over the Strait of Hormuz, and provides an incentive for peace to all eight countries bordering the Gulf (six Gulf nations, Iran, and Iraq).

The New York Times highlighted this proposal, arguing that the current U.S. attempt to open the Strait of Hormuz by force is akin to the "punishment of Sisyphus"—deadly and ineffective.

This proposal is modeled after the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), which regulated the joint production of steel and coal in Europe after World War II.

After experiencing two devastating world wars, France rejected the method of isolating Germany as it had after World War I, and instead, based on the ECSC, jointly produced coal and steel—the core resources for military supplies—with Germany.

Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands joined this effort, which later became the foundation of the European Union (EU).

Esfandyar Batmanghelidj, head of the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation, told the newspaper, "If we cannot even imagine a world where these countries (the eight Gulf nations) administer a nominal fee for maritime security and environmental conservation, it serves as an indicator of whether a path toward sustainable regional peace even exists."

Achieving such integration would require overcoming numerous obstacles, including conflicting political interests and historical grievances, but the current alternative of attempting to forcibly open the Strait of Hormuz is equally fraught with daunting challenges.

Mara Karlin, a professor of security studies at Johns Hopkins University who served as an assistant secretary of defense in the Joe Biden administration, pointed out that mine-clearing operations to reopen the strait are slow and arduous, and that a ceasefire is a prerequisite because the U.S. troops involved would inevitably be exposed to danger.

Furthermore, the Strait of Hormuz can be re-blocked with just a single mine, and Iran has developed capabilities to block the strait more agilely through mobile missile launchers and armed fast-boat operations.

Neutralizing these Iranian capabilities would require deploying large-scale ground forces along Iran's 2,000-kilometer southern coastline.

Pointing to these realities, the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation argued that major ports in the Gulf, such as the Jebel Ali Port in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), already charge service fees to ships, and that granting similar authority to a transnational body and distributing the revenue would not be significantly different.

They proposed a system of charging fees to the supertankers that pass through the Strait of Hormuz annually, including the 600 supertankers that frequently traverse these waters, as the most rational step.

In fact, these supertankers cause marine pollution, and from the perspective of tanker operators, the fees for the Strait of Hormuz would be minimal.

The key to realizing this proposal is whether the U.S. and Iran will agree to it.

Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reprinted the report on July 10, stating in an editorial that "the Strait of Hormuz is not just a transit route for trade and energy, but an opportunity for regional cooperation," adding that "if managed properly, the economic and financial benefits could be distributed more fairly among regional countries."

U.S. President Donald Trump has been inconsistent in his stance, having advocated for "free passage" through the Strait of Hormuz before suddenly proposing a 20 percent fee on the value of cargo, only to retract it later.

In this regard, The New York Times noted, "Analysts point to the lack of clearly defined U.S. policy goals as one of the biggest obstacles at present."

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.