Iran ‘does not forget its friends’ as Malaysia ships pass Hormuz amid selective access

A tanker shown in an image posted by Iran’s embassy in Kuala Lumpur, which said it was the first Malaysian-linked vessel to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

Photo: x / iraninmalaysia Tehran’s decision to let Malaysia-linked vessels through the Strait of Hormuz highlighted Iran’s growing use of access to the strategic waterway as leverage, analysts said, with only a limited number of ships now able to pass and access increasingly determined by political ties rather than treated as a neutral commercial right.

For Malaysia, the move drew attention not only to Tehran’s close ties with Putrajaya but also to scrutiny surrounding sanction-sensitive oil trade and ship-to-ship transfers in its waters.

At least one Malaysia-linked tanker bound for Johor resumed its journey on Sunday after Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim raised the issue directly with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, helping secure clearance for seven vessels stranded in or near the strait.

Iran’s embassy in Kuala Lumpur made the political messaging explicit, saying in a social media post that the Islamic Republic “does not forget its friends” after the first Malaysian-bound vessel passed through the strait, a conduit for about 20 per cent of the world’s oil, where traffic has been severely restricted since the outbreak of the US-Israel war on Iran.

Analysts said Iran appeared to be moving towards a more selective access model in the strait, using passage as a form of leverage.

Leonardo Jacopo Maria Mazzucco, a Gulf security analyst, said the waterway was no longer just a chokepoint. “It is becoming a space where access is negotiated and politically shaped,” Mazzucco told This Week in Asia.

Reuters has reported similar signs of selective passage elsewhere in recent days, with several Omani, French and Japanese-linked vessels allowed through the strait even as ships linked to the US or Israel faced tighter restrictions.

On Sunday, Anwar said he had told Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian that the seven Malaysian commercial vessels stranded in the strait were critical to the country’s oil supply, according to state media. “Immediately after the call, he [Pezeshkian] instructed that Malaysian vessels be given passage,” Anwar said.

Malaysia’s Foreign Ministry confirmed on Tuesday that one of the Malaysian vessels stranded in the strait had been granted safe passage and was now heading to Johor.

Putrajaya said the move was the result of high-level diplomatic engagement, including previous ta

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