From France to India: Who is Iran allowing through the Strait of Hormuz?

Ships from Qatar turned around on Monday after sailing toward the Strait of Hormuz, while a growing number of countries have received permission to traverse the waterway.

Adam Lucente

Apr 6, 2026

Vessels linked to India, France, Turkey and Iraq are among those that have transited the Strait of Hormuz in recent days, signaling limited movement amid the ongoing blockade. Yet dozens of ships remain stranded there as US President Donald Trump reiterated that Iran must reopen the strategic waterway by Tuesday or suffer the consequences.

Iran declared the Strait of Hormuz closed to most ships in early March after US and Israeli strikes launched the ongoing war. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi later said ships from “friendly nations” could cross, naming China, Russia, India, Iraq and Pakistan.

Iran’s semiofficial Fars News Agency reported on Sunday that 15 ships had transited through the Strait of Hormuz in the past 24 hours, while The Associated Press reported on March 18 that about 90 ships, including oil tankers, had crossed the strait since the start of the war. Data from the shipping tracker MarineTraffic showed dozens of vessels congregated along the coasts of Arab Gulf states on Monday. 

According to UNCTAD, ship traffic through the strait fell sharply from about 130 daily transits in February to only six in March, a decline of nearly 95%.

Alaeddin Boroujerdi, a........

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