Strait of Hormuz Fertiliser Deliveries Delayed by Elusive US-Iran Peace Deal, Warns UN Official

The UN-established process designed to allow vessels carrying fertiliser to pass through the Strait of Hormuz has encountered no technical objections, but is currently being stalled by diplomacy, a senior UN official told The National.

Jorge Moreira da Silva, UN undersecretary general and executive director of the UN Office for Project Services, warned in an interview with The National that the pursuit of a broader US-Iran peace deal has entangled the vital operation in a diplomatic web. He spoke in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly high-level debate week, where he engaged with all parties to urge them to permit the system to function and mitigate the global repercussions of the disruption.

"Nobody [is] expressing concerns about the design of the mechanism. So ... from a technical point of view, the mechanism seems to make sense," Mr da Silva stated. However, he added, "we didn't get Iran and US agreeing on the mechanism, and I think that this is the big dilemma that we are facing."

Before the conflict, the Strait of Hormuz handled approximately 20 to 30 per cent of global fertiliser exports. Following the outbreak of war in late February, export volumes plummeted to under 5 per cent of pre-war levels. Consequently, the UN estimates that nearly 45 million people could face acute food insecurity due to the disruption in the strait.

Although the US and Iran previously signed a framework agreement intended to pave the way for a comprehensive peace deal, retaliatory attacks have resumed recently amid a diplomatic deadlock and an increasingly elusive push for a final settlement. Representatives from both sides met in New York this week for what appeared to be a diplomatic breakthrough, yet no tangible results materialized, and both nations quickly reverted to mutual threats and hostile rhetoric.

Describing the complex framework, Mr da Silva noted: "The US and Iran are trying to get a deal, a big deal, which is about dealing with everything. There is a conflict, and they are trying hard … as we have seen in the last few days, to engage and to find common ground about everything. But my message is, in the meantime, knowing that this big negotiation may take some time … it will be important to allow the UN to put in place a mechanism that would alleviate the suffering of the people, particularly related to food insecurity."

Once granted political approval, the system could be operational within approximately seven days. It would register vessels seeking to collect cargo, coordinate safe passage and deconfliction through a joint center in Salalah, and provide designated routes and GPS coordinates. Subsequently, the UN would monitor and verify cargo loading at Gulf and other ports, track the ships during their transit, and report the outcomes to the international community.

According to the UNOPS chief, the initiative is a straightforward operation comparable to previous efforts, such as managing aid trucks entering Gaza, overseeing vessels traveling from Djibouti to Yemen, and operating the Black Sea corridor. "This is not more difficult, from a conflict point of view, than other contexts," said Mr da Silva. He explained that the primary challenge lies in the diplomatic negotiations rather than the logistical implementation, expressing hope that the current week would bring a breakthrough.