TOKYO, March 23 — Tokyo is “not thinking about” calling on Iran to let Japanese tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, the foreign minister has said, after Tehran said it was ready to help.
Japan depends on crude oil imports from the Middle East, most of which transits the strait, located in the Gulf.
Iran has effectively closed the strait in retaliation for US-Israeli strikes, sending countries reliant on the shipping lane scrambling for alternative routes and tapping reserves.
Asked about whether the government would urge Iran to let Japanese ships transit Hormuz, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said yesterday on a Fuji Television programme that “for the time being, we are not thinking about that”.
His comment came after Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said in a telephone interview with Kyodo News Friday that Tehran was prepared to ensure safe passage for Japan.
“They only need to contact us so we can discuss how this transit can take place,” Araghchi added.
Motegi spoke with Iranian counterpart Araghchi on tomorrow but he told Fuji Television that there was no mention from his counterpart of helping Japanese ships.
“Safety of navigation is extremely important. That’s what we spoke about,” Motegi said.
In the Kyodo interview, Araghchi denied the passage was closed, insisting “from our perspective, the strait is open”.
“It is only closed to ships belonging to our enemies — countries that attack us. For other countries, (their) vessels can pass through the strait,” Araghchi said according to a Farsi transcript of the interview posted on his Telegram channel.
Last week, Tokyo said it was beginning the release of its strategic oil reserves, among the world’s largest. — AFP
