‘Hormuz shipping muted despite Iran war accord’

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz stayed at a trickle Tuesday, maritime trackers indicated, two days after the US promised to reopen it under an agreement with Iran to end their war.

As of 1500 GMT on Tuesday, tracking platform Kpler had detected just four crossings of the strategic waterway that day by vessels carrying raw materials.

Five were detected on Monday – a similar rate to traffic during the week before the US-Iran agreement to end the Middle East war, announced late Sunday.

“The Strait of Hormuz continues to operate below normal commercial levels, despite signals of diplomatic progress,” Kpler said on X.

The Iranian government said on Tuesday that the US military’s counter-blockade of Iranian ports, imposed on April 13, had been lifted ahead of the formal signing of the agreement.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that ships were starting to come out of the strait. He said it would “completely” reopen as soon as the accord is signed on Friday.

Shipping groups have warned, however, that uncertainty remains about the steps towards reopening and how long it could take for the strait to be cleared of mines.

“Key operational questions remain unresolved, including transit security, navigation fees and safe passage arrangements,” Kpler said.

The vessels counted since the deal all transited with their transponders switched on, but others may have passed without transmitting signals, making detection more difficult.

An Iranian tanker, the Diona, switched its transponder back on Tuesday for the first time in nearly two months.

Tanker owners’ association Intertanko said in an advisory published on June 5 that the US Navy had been liaising with ships to help them safely pass by night, with their lights and transponders off, through the strait on its southern side near Oman’s coast.

It said 15 ships a day had been using that route.

Before the conflict erupted on February 28, about 120 transits a day were recorded, according to maritime news outlet Lloyd’s List.

In peacetime, the strait saw around a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas exports pass through, along with other key commodities.

Son of late Shah warns against deal

Meanwhile, the son of the ousted shah of Iran spoke out Tuesday against any deal with Iran that leaves the Islamic government in place.

Speaking after meeting MPs during a visit to London, 65-year-old Reza Pahlavi said the international community should back opposition protesters rather than making peace with Iran.

“Dealing with this regime will fail, and we will all face the consequences,” he declared in a social media post.

“The regime’s 47-year war against the Iranian people continues. Just as it has never made peace with its own citizens, it will never truly make peace with the world,” he said.

Pahlavi’s father, Mohammed Reza Pahlavi, was the last shah of Iran, who fled into exile in 1979 ahead of an Islamic revolution that overthrew the monarchy and died in exile soon afterwards.

For some – but far from all – opponents of the Islamic Republic, the exiled crown prince is an inspirational figure, and he has called for a nationwide referendum to establish a new system of government.

He also remains controversial – criticised for his support of Israel and for not distancing himself from his father’s autocratic rule.

On February 28, US and Israeli planes and missiles struck Iran, killing the supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, plunging the Middle East into conflict and, for a while, giving hope to the opposition that the government could fall.

Now, on Friday, Washington and Tehran are due to sign a deal meant to end the conflict and clear the way for settlement talks that are expected to leave the government in place and lift some economic sanctions.

“Any agreement that preserves this regime or its remnants will fail. The Iranian people will not accept it,” Pahlavi warned.

“With or without international support, the people of Iran will overthrow this regime. Freedom will come to Iran.”

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