CNN’sRichard Questreported on Friday that ships are still not sailing through the Strait of Hormuz despite PresidentDonald Trump’sassurance that the strait is open, which has led to dropping oil prices and soaring markets.
“We lead this hour with breaking news. PresidentTrumptelling Axios that negotiators for the U.S. and Iran will likely meet again this weekend, and that he expects a deal to end the war in a day or two. This is happening as Iran has announced that the Strait of Hormuz is now completely open for commercial shipping, though its Revolutionary Guard is now laying out conditions for actually getting through,” began anchorBoris Sanchez, adding:
President Trump quickly touted the announcement of the strait’s reopening, adding that Iran also committed to never again closing the vital waterway. The president also said that the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports will remain in place until a deal to end the war is complete.
Iranian state media swiftly responded to that, warning that the strait will close again if the blockade continues. Today, investors are cheering the news that this critical passageway for 20 percent of the world’s oil is reopening. You see stocks have jumped, oil prices have tumbled. CNN business editor-at-large Richard Quest joins us now. So, Richard, when will shipping firms — I should say — feel confident enough to send their vessels through the strait again?
“I think they will only do that when they’ve received guarantees, however they’d be given, from the Iranians that their ships are not at risk. We’ve heard from Maersk, we’ve heard from Hapag-Lloyd, and their CEOs have all told us: yes, we’re ready to sail, but only once it’s safe. And that is certainly not the case at the moment,” Quest replied, adding:
Boris, if you just look at the introduction that you’ve just given — the number of “this has happened but dependent upon that,” “over there’s going to do this but only if this happens,” “perhaps over that” — there are so many ifs, conditions, and preconditions that nobody can say with any certainty that this deal, this opening of the Hormuz Strait, will continue for any length of time.
We haven’t actually seen the ships, by the way, going through. And so yes, the market has given an extremely positive reaction because this is what they want — this is exactly what they want — but whether these gains hold in the short to medium term relies on actual evidence of it taking place.
Reuters’s Chief National Security ReporterPhil Stewartaddedon Friday afternoon, “Significant differences between Iran and the United States remain to reach adealaimed at ending the war, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Friday, adding that keeping the Strait of Hormuz open is ‘conditional on U.S. adherence to the terms of ceasefire.’”
Alex Griffing is a Senior Editor at Mediaite. Send tips via email: [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @alexgriffing
Source: Drudge Report
