ASEAN Beat | Diplomacy | Southeast Asia

Malaysia’s Hotline to Tehran

When Malaysian oil tankers became stranded in the Persian Gulf, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim phoned a friend.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim speaks at the Putra World Trade Center in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, May 3, 2026.

“Red carpet welcome for them!” wrote an Instagram user in Malaysia.

Virtual cheers and applause emojis greeted Ocean Thunder’s arrival at the port of Pengerang on April 5. The oil tanker, carrying a million barrels of Basrah Heavy crude, was among the first vessels to exit the Strait of Hormuz after the Iran conflict erupted in late February.

Ocean Thunder’s safe transit was a diplomatic win for Anwar Ibrahim, Malaysia’s prime minister. In a phone conversation with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian on March 26, Anwar negotiated safe passage for seven ships. The tankers were chartered by a unit of Petronas, the state-owned energy company.

“If not for diplomatic efforts, I fear the Ocean Thunder would still be stuck in the Persian Gulf,” a maritime law expert at the Universiti Malaya in Kuala Lumpur told Free Malaysia Today.

Malaysia’s heavily subsidized domestic fuel market relies on a steady supply of inexpensive Iraqi crude for price stability. Nearly 70 percent of the country’s oil comes from the Persian Gulf region, and half the imports pass through the Strait of Hormuz.  Malaysia is also a leading oil exporter in the 10-member ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) bloc, but follows a “sell high, buy low” energy policy, shipping premium-quality offshore crude to Japan and Australia.

Maritime intelligence company Windward noted that the release of Ocean Thunder and other Petronas-linked tankers served a dual purpose, benefiting two of Iran’s longstanding trading partners, Iraq and Malaysia. “Transit permissions are selectively allocated based on political alignment and cargo type,” stated an intelligence briefing dated April 6.

A foreign policy guided by “economic pragmatism” underpins Malaysia’s energy ties with Iran following the imposition of U.S.-led sanctions in 2012. Apart from legal oil imports, the coastal waters around the Malay peninsula have served as a hub for the “dark fleet,” a network of private ships covertly transporting oil from Iran and other sanctioned countries to markets in Asia.

Malaysia’s links to the Islamic Republic extend beyond the oil trade. Both countries are leading advocates for the Palestinian cause in their regions. In a televised speech after his phone call with Iran’s president, Anwar reminded his audience about Gaza, saying: “Don’t forget the root of the problem.” Malaysia’s leverage, he explained, stems from its “non-hostile” status within the Islamic........

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