Iran says it will not allow “a single litre of oil” to pass through the Strait of Hormuz for the benefit of the United States (US), Israel, and their allies.
Speaking on Wednesday, Ebrahim Zolfaqari, spokesperson for Tehran’s Khatam al-Anbiya military command headquarters, said oil price will reach $200 a barrel.
The statement comes a day after the US threatened “fire and fury” on Iran if it disrupted the flow of oil.
“And let us firmly reiterate that we will never allow even a single litre of oil to pass through the Strait of Hormuz for the benefit of the US, the Zionists, and their partners,” he said.
“Any vessel or oil shipment intended for America, the Zionist regime, or their hostile allies, will be a legitimate target for us.
“Your strategy of hiding behind Iran’s neighbouring countries and the Muslims of the West Asia region, and even the world has expired.”
Zolfaqari warned the countries (Israel and the US) that they will be unable to artificially lower oil and energy prices.
“With the expansion of war in the region, we have announced that you should prepare for $200 per barrel because the price of oil depends on security in the region, and you are the source of insecurity,” he said.
For more than a week, the international crude oil market has been dealing with what some traders have described as a “brutal wave of volatility” caused by the conflict in the Middle East.
Crude oil prices crossed $100 per barrel on Monday — the highest level since July 2022 — before easing to $87 on Tuesday.
Donald Trump, the US president, had warned that “death, fire, and fury will reign upon them (Iran)” if they stopped the flow of oil within the Strait of Hormuz.
On March 2, major container shipping lines suspended sailings through the Strait of Hormuz and the Suez Canal over the escalating security risks.
Hormuz is a narrow maritime passage connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. The waterway is said to be the only sea route linking the Gulf’s oil and gas producers to global markets, making it one of the most strategically important waterways in the world.
