IRGC Navy keeps requiring vessels to coordinate with them despite lifted US blockade

TEHRAN, June 16. /TASS/. The Navy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC, elite units of the Iranian Armed Forces) keeps requiring vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz to coordinate with them, even as the United States has lifted its blockade of the waterway, the Iranian state television and radio broadcaster reported on Tuesday.

According to the report, the naval forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps continue to stand firm that all vessels wishing to pass through the Strait of Hormuz should maintain coordination with the IRGC Navy.

The Iranian broadcaster also said that all Iranian vessels are currently passing through the Strait of Hormuz unhindered and there are three Iranian oil tankers currently in the northern Indian Ocean while two more ships have already sailed towards ports on the southern coast of Iran.

Earlier, official representatives of the United States, Iran, and Pakistan, which acts as a go-between, confirmed that Washington and Tehran had reached an agreement, which is expected to be inked in Geneva on June 19.

According to Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi, during a 60-day ceasefire the sides will discuss Iran’s nuclear program, while the US will lift its maritime blockade against Iran from June 15. Apart from that, military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon, will cease immediately and permanently.