MUSCAT, Oman, June 23, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Iran and Oman will study the costs to 
be charged for services provided in administering the Strait of Hormuz, the 
two countries said Tuesday, insisting they held sovereignty over the 
waterway.

Tehran has repeatedly said it plans to charge what it calls maritime service 
fees for crossing the strait, as opposed to tolls, a plan fiercely opposed by 
the United States.

In a joint statement on Tuesday, Iran and Oman emphasised their "sovereign 
rights over their territorial waters", but Muscat's foreign minister said on 
X that both sides were committed to "toll-free safe passage".

They "agreed to maintain their dialogue on this issue through a joint working 
group between the two foreign ministries", the statement said.

The working group was aimed at reaching "agreement on the future 
administration of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the services that 
will be provided in this regard and the costs associated with them in 
accordance with international standards", they said.

The statement followed meetings in Muscat between top officials from the two 
nations.

 Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and chief negotiator Mohammad 
Bagher Ghalibaf met Oman's Sultan Haitham bin Tariq and Foreign Minister Badr 
Albusaidi.

Last week, Iran's foreign ministry said the country would impose what it 
called maritime service fees for crossing the strait.

Ghalibaf has said the fees will come into effect after a 60-day period 
without charges that is stipulated in a memorandum of understanding signed 
with the United States.

The MOU states that Iran and Oman, which border the strait, will discuss its 
"future administration and maritime services" alongside other Gulf countries.

The strait, through which roughly 20 percent of the world's crude oil and 
liquified natural gas normally transits, was closed by Iran after it came 
under fire from the United States and Israel.

But Iran has since lifted its blockade as part of the deal signed with the US 
last week.

Prior to the memorandum of understanding, Oman had come under fire from US 
officials over reports it planned to charge joint tolls with Iran.

US President Donald Trump has threatened that if Oman tries to control the 
waterway alongside Iran he will "blow them up".

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has also said he will sanction Muscat if 
it helps impose a tolling system.

On Tuesday, Omani Foreign Minister Albusaidi said on X following his meeting 
with Araghchi and Ghalibaf that "we affirmed commitment to international law 
and toll-free safe passage".