The Chasm Between Sound Bites and Reality

New York Times has this headline:  'Open' Strait Renews Hopes for Peace Talks but Hurdles Remain.

Let me define "open" for you. smile

Key Points:

Iran transformed the ceasefire into a document of maritime sovereignty.

What Washington rejected in negotiations, it accepted out of necessity.

The Strait is no longer an international passage - but has become a permanent pressure card in Tehran's hands.

Caveats:

Hostile nations will not be allowed transit.  Others will pay applicable tolls. And all passage will take place through Iran's territorial waters.

Hostile countries will not be allowed to transit the Strait of Hormuz. 

There is a new system for the Strait. Civilian ships may only cross via a route designated by Iran. Passage of warships thought the Strait is forbidden. Crossing is only allowed by authorization of the IRGC Naval Forces. This crossing is occurring within the battlefield lull period agreement after the ceasefire in Lebanon.

The Strait has not been opened; rather redefined.  The new route passes entirely through Iranian territorial waters and the entry is from north of Larak, with exit from south of it. This is an unprecedented geographical-legal shift in the history of the Persian Gulf.

This dude is sufficiently colorful:

Iranian Parliament Deputy, Mahmoud Nabavian:

"With the withdrawal of the evil American regime and the acceptance of the ceasefire in Lebanon, some commercial ships will be allowed - after paying fees - to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.  The claim of a Naval blockade by the treacherous yellow dog, despite the passage of Iranian tankers in the past few days."

"Trump's statements regarding the blockade are just talk, and he is imposing the blockade on his allies, and not on us."  Commander of the Iranian Navy

And then we have this:

بسیاری از کشتیها، که بیشتر آنها کشتیهای باری هستند، در صف عبور از «دروازه عوارضی» فرضی ایران ایستادهاند. این فرایند به دلیل باریک بودن مسیر دریایی و تنگناهای اداری در فرآیند اخذ مجوزها، کند و دشوار به نظر میرسد. تا این لحظه، اوضاع تفاوت چندانی با آنچه از زمان آغاز آتش بس شاهد بوده ایم ندارد و حجم ترانزیت همچنان پایین باقی مانده است.

Google translate:

Many ships, mostly cargo ships, are queuing to pass through Iran’s supposed “toll gate.” The process is slow and difficult due to the narrowness of the sea route and bureaucratic bottlenecks in obtaining permits. So far, the situation is not much different from what we have seen since the ceasefire began, and transit volumes remain low.