Tehran: Iran has expressed concern over the increasing environmental pollution in the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf, saying that all countries and institutions benefiting from this important maritime route through commercial traffic have a legal and moral responsibility to address environmental damage.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmail Baghai said in a statement on the social media platform X that videos of oil spills have emerged in the coastal areas of Qeshm Island in recent days. According to him, the oil flowed from the Persian Gulf to the coast and initial evidence suggests that the possible source of this pollution was a foreign bulk carrier ship.
According to the Iranian spokesperson, traces of pollution have been recorded in at least three coastal locations and different parts of the sea surface of Qeshm Island. He said that emergency planning is being made to deal with environmental damage.
Ismail Baqai said that this incident of oil pollution on the coast of Qeshm Island is actually just a prominent example of a wider environmental pollution that has been going on in the region for decades. According to him, the water and marine ecosystems of the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman have been facing various types of pollution for a long time.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman claimed that this environmental damage has caused losses worth trillions of dollars to Iran’s coastal areas.
He raised the question of who is responsible for compensating for such losses? According to him, this could include countries that receive cheap energy from the region, insurance companies providing ships, or countries that participate in military operations in the region.
Baqai said that the use of the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman as a battlefield for military operations and the use of modern weapons has posed further threats to the marine environment. According to him, Iran has one of the longest coastlines in the region along the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, so Tehran cannot remain silent about environmental damage.
He stressed that every party that benefits from commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz must play a role in eliminating marine pollution and restoring environmental damage.
The Strait of Hormuz is a very important sea route for global energy transport, and any disruption to the movement of commercial ships through it could have immediate effects on global energy and oil markets. In recent months, military tensions in the region and disruptions to maritime traffic have also increased concerns about marine pollution.
According to experts, the Persian Gulf ecosystem is already facing problems such as oil transportation, industrial activities and marine pollution. Oil spills can cause long-term damage to marine life, fisheries, coastal populations and other sensitive ecological areas.
It should be noted that past scientific research has also identified the spread of oil pollution around Qeshm Island and the Strait of Hormuz and its potential impacts on the coastal environment.
Iran’s latest statement comes at a time when maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and the security situation in the region remain the center of global attention.