Tehran, May 25 -- Iran insisted on Monday that it was not seeking to impose tolls on ships using the Strait of Hormuz, but rather it was working with Oman on the creation of a new governing mechanism for passage through one of the world's most important shipping lanes, stating it will have costs to cover.
Speaking in Tehran, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei pushed back against the criticism from Washington and the West that Iran was attempting to use the strait as a political weapon by monetising access it, and said "Iran does not charge tolls. There is no toll," adding "We are not seeking to collect tolls."While rejecting the Western claims, he nonetheless acknowledged that any future system involving the vital strait wou...