Iran Tensions Escalate as Military Closes Strait of Hormuz to Shipping
Iran tensions have risen following Iran's announcement of the Strait of Hormuz closure and its pledge to target ships attempting transit after US military strikes, which has prompted the G7 summit in France to invite Arab leaders for urgent talks on the resulting economic impacts and negotiations.
Iran Announces Strait of Hormuz Closure
Iran's military command said Thursday it will target any ship transiting the Strait of Hormuz, after it struck two vessels attempting to pass through the strategic waterway. [2] The US military said Wednesday it has begun another round of strikes against Iran after President Donald Trump said more were coming. [2] The escalating attacks threatened to derail efforts to end the war, with Trump warning that Tehran would “pay the price” for stalled negotiations. [2]
G7 Summit Addresses Iran Crisis
The G7 is to be held in the French lakeside resort of Evian on 15-17 June. [1] French President Emmanuel Macron said leaders of four Arab states would be invited for talks on the US-Israeli war on Iran. [1] The invitees would attend sessions on Tuesday at the summit of the Group of Seven leading economies to be held in the French lakeside resort of Evian on 15-17 June. [1] To address the war launched by the United States and Israel against Iran in late February, leaders of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates would also be invited to a separate session on Tuesday. [1] The talks would focus on the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which has “a real impact on our economies” due in particular to soaring fuel prices, and on “negotiations on Iran,” Macron said. [1] Following a dinner for the G7 leaders on Monday and the two sessions focused on the crises in Ukraine and the Middle East, the “North-South partnership” will be on the agenda, Macron added. [1]
IAEA Demands Iran Report Uranium Stocks
The UN nuclear watchdog's 35-nation Board of Governors passed a US-backed resolution on Wednesday telling Iran to declare its remaining enriched uranium stocks and let inspectors verify them. [5] The resolution text submitted by the US, Britain, France and Germany was passed with 21 votes in favour, three against and 10 abstentions. [5] Those opposing were Russia, China and Niger. [5] The move came within hours of the US and Iran trading military strikes after US President Donald Trump said Iran had downed a US Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz. [5] Israeli and US attacks last June destroyed or badly damaged Iranian uranium-enrichment plants but much of the enriched uranium they produced, including material close to weapons grade, is thought to have survived. [5] Iran still has not informed the International Atomic Energy Agency of the fate of its nuclear material following US bombings. [5] Iran says board 'whitewashing' US attacks. [5] The US led the push for the resolution, but Iran has called it “whitewashing military aggression,” since inspectors had access before the strikes. [5] “Not only do Iran's actions raise urgent concerns regarding the nature of its nuclear programme, they also threaten the very integrity of the global nuclear safeguards regime,” the four Western powers said in a statement to the board. [5] The resolution said Iran should “provide the Agency with complete information on nuclear material inventories” and grant the IAEA the access it needs to verify that “without delay.” [5]
South Korean Vessels Navigate Strait
Another vessel operated by a South Korean shipper has successfully passed through the crisis-stricken Strait of Hormuz, marking the second case of its kind, Seoul's oceans ministry said Thursday. [3] The vessel is a liquefied natural gas carrier operated by a Korean shipping company under a charter agreement with a foreign party, with eight Korean crew members on board, according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. [3] With the latest case, the number of South Korean vessels stranded in the Strait of Hormuz went down to 24 from 25, with the number of Korean sailors down to 139 from 147. [3] Last month, Universal Winner, a South Korean oil tanker operated by Korean shipping company HMM, successfully exited the strait, marking the first case of its kind. [3] The ship arrived in the southeastern port city of Ulsan on Wednesday, carrying 2 million barrels of crude oil. [3] The foreign ministry said it has emphasized to Iranian authorities the importance of the swift and safe navigation of all vessels, including South Korean ones, within the Strait of Hormuz. [3]
US Defense Production Talks Planned
The Trump administration plans to meet executives from the biggest U.S. defense contractors at the White House as soon as next week to discuss accelerating production, as U.S. strikes on Iran and other military operations draw down supplies. [4]
Ongoing Negotiations and Tensions
US Vice President JD Vance acknowledged differences with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an interview excerpt released Wednesday, saying the Israeli leader had “gotten some things wrong” in the Middle East war. [2] The US and Iran are in talks aimed at extending their ceasefire and paving the way for wider negotiations on issues including Iran's nuclear programme. [5] Talks already appear tense. [5] Trump appeared to express frustration at the negotiations. [5] “Iran is all talk and no action,” Trump said in a social media post on Wednesday. [5] “They've taken too long to negotiate a deal that would have been great for them, now they will have to pay the price!!!” [5] Trump has said that Iran must not be able to produce a nuclear weapon, and Iran says it never would. [5] A key aim of Trump's is removing Iran's enriched uranium, particularly the 440.9 kg enriched to up to 60 percent purity, a short step from the roughly 90 percent of weapons grade, the IAEA estimates Iran had until the first Israeli strikes on 13 June 2025. [5] That is enough, if enriched further, for 10 nuclear weapons, according to an IAEA yardstick. [5] How much of it remains is unclear. [5] Iran's mission to the IAEA had warned the board to be “cautious on the path forward.” [5] Iran bristles at resolutions against it, and has responded to previous ones by escalating its atomic activities or scaling back cooperation with the IAEA. [5] Asked how Iran would respond, its ambassador to the IAEA, Reza Najafi, told reporters that Tehran would decide. [5] “Without addressing the root causes of the present situation, the resolution focuses exclusively on their consequences and makes a number of excessive demands (on) Iran,” he said after the vote. [5]
What to watch next: The G7 sessions on Tuesday will address the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and negotiations on Iran, while the Trump administration's planned meetings with defense contractors and ongoing US-Iran ceasefire extension talks continue amid the IAEA resolution.
