Iran will not allow a U.S. naval blockade to continue and will target American warships if they enter what Tehran considers an unauthorized route through the Strait of Hormuz, Mohsen Rezaei, military adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, said on Iranian state television.
Rezaei’s remarks came after U.S. Central Command said Monday that it had redirected 44 commercial vessels, disabled two and boarded two others as part of the naval blockade, which Washington reimposed last month following the collapse of a cease-fire agreed as part of a memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran.
“If the United States brings warships into the illegal route in the Strait of Hormuz, we will target them,” Rezaei said.
Close
A child plays at the beach, with vessels in the Strait of Hormuz visible near the beach of Bandar Abbas, Iran, May. Credit: Majid Asgaripour/REUTERS
A child plays at the beach, with vessels in the Strait of Hormuz visible near the beach of Bandar Abbas, Iran, May. Credit: Majid Asgaripour/REUTERS
He accused Washington of violating the memorandum of understanding by launching attacks without first referring disputes to the agreement’s dispute resolution committee. The United States resumed strikes on Iran in early July after Tehran attacked several ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz along a route it had not authorized.
Rezaei said Washington must first fulfill conditions agreed upon in the memorandum. “They should start by returning our funds, declaring they are not at war with Iran, and ceasing the creation of insecurity in the Strait of Hormuz. Allow us to assist global trade through our own arrangements, even better than before.”
When the U.S. begins fulfilling its obligations – “which they had briefly begun to implement for a few days as a preliminary step” – Iran would view it as a change in behavior, Rezaei added.
He also said Iran “will under no circumstances allow any route through the Strait of Hormuz other than Iran’s route to be opened.”