PARIS: France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Friday that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested that Washington’s objective was to destroy Iran’s ballistic capabilities and that Paris shared the same objectives on restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
“I am not going to speak on behalf of Marco Rubio, and I will gladly refer to the public statements he has recently made, which correspond to the conversations we had today regarding the stated US military objectives, being the neutralization of Iran’s ballistic capabilities,” Barrot said on the sidelines of a G7 meeting in France.
When asked whether the US had made requests regarding Hormuz, Barrot said France shared the same objectives as the US and that an escort system for tankers would be necessary once the peak of hostilities in the region is over.
Meanwhile, two Chinese container ships turned back after trying to exit the Gulf via the strait on Friday, ship-tracking data showed, despite assurances from Iran that Chinese vessels could pass.
The operator, China’s COSCO, had said in a March 25 client advisory that it had resumed bookings for general cargo containers for shipments from Asia to the Gulf.
The CSCL Indian Ocean and CSCL Arctic Ocean, both Hong Kong-flagged, have been stuck in the Gulf since the US-Israeli war with Iran began on Feb. 28.
They attempted to pass through the strait at 0350 GMT on Friday but then turned back, analysis from the Kpler data platform showed.
While this was the first crossing attempted by a major shipping group since the start of the war, Friday’s incident showed “safe passage could not be guaranteed,” Kpler analyst Rebecca Gerdes said.
On Wednesday, Tehran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a Tweet that Iran “permitted passage through the Strait of Hormuz for friendly nations including China, Russia, India, Iraq, and Pakistan.”
The two vessels both broadcast messages on their AIS ship-tracking systems stating they had Chinese owners and crews, data on the LSEG platform showed on Friday.
Shanghai-based parent company COSCO Shipping was not immediately available for comment.
Three container ships of various nationalities were turned back from the Strait of Hormuz after warnings from the Revolutionary Guards’ naval force, Iranian state media reported on Friday.
A trickle of other vessels has departed in recent days, including Indian-flagged tankers carrying liquefied petroleum gas for cooking.
A Thai oil tanker passed through the strait following diplomatic coordination with Iran, a Thai official and the oil firm that owns the vessel said on Wednesday.
Traffic in the past week has consisted mainly of Iranian oil tankers departing and bulk carriers arriving in Iran with cargoes of grain and other commodities, according to data from maritime specialists Lloyd’s List Intelligence and Reuters analysis.
Iran has repeatedly stated that some may pass but asserted that Tehran would determine which vessels would do so and added that those linked to the US or, Israel, or their allies would be blocked.
“Aggressor parties — namely, the United States and the Israeli regime – as well as other participants in the aggression, do not qualify for innocent or non-hostile passage,” Iran said in a circular sent on March 24 to member countries of the UN shipping agency, the International Maritime Organization.
Initiating peace talks would be “conducive to restoring normal navigation,” through Hormuz, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said during a call with his Pakistani counterpart on Friday.
