CDN NEWS | 
US NEWS 
By Zoltan Simon
Chinese President Xi Jinping opposes charging a toll in the Strait of Hormuz, a White House official said, in an apparent reference to Iran’s effort to monetize its control of the waterway where roughly a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas normally transit.
Xi talked about that and the potential purchase of more US oil at a meeting with President Donald Trump in Beijing today, the official said. China’s readout didn’t include energy in the list of topics the two presidents discussed, although it did say the pair talked about the Middle East.
US efforts to end the war with Iran were dealt a setback after a commercial vessel was apparently seized by unauthorized personnel near the United Arab Emirates, adding to uncertainty over control of the Hormuz strait.
The ship, whose identity wasn’t disclosed, was taken 38 nautical miles off the UAE coast and was bound for the Islamic Republic, the UK Maritime Trade Operations said today. Separately, India condemned an attack on one of its vessels in the Gulf of Oman, which sunk after it was set ablaze, calling the incident “unacceptable.”
Iran will allow a number of Chinese vessels to transit the strait following discussions with Beijing’s foreign ministry, the semi-official Fars news agency reported.
— Zoltan Simon
Share This:
