Iran has rewarded Spain for its stance against Donald Trump by allowing Spanish ships to pass through the vital Strait of Hormuz, according to local media.
The move is said to be a ‘thank you’ to socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who has been outspoken in his criticism of both the United States and Israel over the war.
Iran is allowing Spanish-flagged vessels through the key Gulf shipping route without restrictions or disruption, an Iranian source was quoted as saying by Majorca Daily Bulletin.
‘Iran allows the Kingdom of Spain to use the Strait of Hormuz with complete freedom without restrictions or barriers that impede the maritime navigation of Spanish ships and tankers,’ the source claimed, although this has not yet officially been confirmed.
The strait is one of the world’s most important energy chokepoints, with roughly a fifth of global oil and gas supplies passing through it each day.
Iran has effectively closed the route to vessels linked to the US, Israel and other countries seen as backing attacks on Tehran.
Separate claims circulating online have suggested Iran even placed an anti-war message from Sanchez on missiles fired towards Israel.
The message read: ‘Of course this war is not only illegal, it is inhumane,’ before ending with a note of thanks from Iran.
Iran has rewarded Spain for its criticism of Donald Trump by allowing Spanish ships to pass through the vital Strait of Hormuz, according to reports. The move is said to be a ‘thank you’ to socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (pictured)
Sanchez has repeatedly warned of wider consequences of the conflict, saying: ‘This is how humanity’s great disasters start.
‘You cannot play Russian roulette with the destiny of millions,’ according to reports.
He pointed to the fallout from the Iran war, including rising jihadist terrorism and soaring energy prices, arguing the consequences of action against Iran could be just as severe.
His stance has drawn criticism from Washington, with Trump branding Spain a ‘loser’ and warning he could take action against the country.
It comes as Iran has responded to Trump’s 15-point peace plan with a list of its own demands, including calling for the closure of US bases in the Middle East and a new toll for Strait of Hormuz shipping.
Washington sent Tehran the plan – modelled on Trump’s Gaza deal – to end the crisis in the Middle East, highlighting the White House’s eagerness to find an offramp from the war as it wrestles with its economic fallout.
The ongoing shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz has proved disastrous for global energy and trade flows, pushing Brent crude prices to their highest levels in nearly four years – at one point reaching nearly $120 a barrel.
It is unclear how widely the plan, delivered via Pakistan, had been shared among Iranian officials, with the regime sternly denying a peace process is taking place following comments from Trump that Tehran wants a deal ‘so badly’.
Public statements aside, Iran has let the Trump administration know it has a high-bar for re-entering a ceasefire deal, including the closure of all American bases in the Gulf and reparations for attacks on the country.
According to the Wall Street Journal, other demands include a new order for the Strait of Hormuz, that would allow Tehran to collect fees from ships that transit the Persian Gulf channel, as Egypt does now with the Suez Canal.
The regime wants it to be guaranteed that the conflict wouldn’t restart and an end to Israel’s attacks on the Iran-backed Lebanese militia Hezbollah.
It has also demanded a lifting of all sanctions on Iran, and for the country to retain its missile programme, with no negotiations to limit it.
According to the Journal, a US official called the demands ‘ridiculous and unrealistic’.
The posturing will make reaching a resolution with the Islamic Republic harder than before Trump started the war, Arab and US officials said.
While the US President claimed on Tuesday that Tehran gave Washington a ‘very big present worth a tremendous amount of money’, an Iranian military spokesman insisted that the US is ‘negotiating with itself’, adding: ‘Someone like us will never come to terms with someone like you.’
Israel and the US have pummelled Iran’s ballistic missiles, launchers and production facilities, as well as its nuclear programme in the bombing campaign that began on February 28, with leaders vowing never to allow the regime to possess a nuclear weapon.
In terms of Washington’s demands on Iran, Israel’s Channel 12 reported that the 15-point plan includes the pledge that nuclear facilities at Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordow must be taken out of use and destroyed.
It also calls for transparency and oversight by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) over activities in Tehran, as well as the promise that the regime will abandon the use of armed proxies in the region, and stop its funding and arming of regional allies.
Iran would have to dismantle its existing nuclear capabilities that have already been accumulated, and commit to never striving to achieve nuclear weapons again.
Under the plan, all enriched material must be handed over to the IAEA, and no nuclear material will be enriched on Iranian soil.
Meanwhile, the Strait of Hormuz will remain open and constitute a ‘free maritime zone’.
