Marcos orders talks with Iran on passage of PH-bound oil tankers through Strait of Hormuz

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has directed the Department of Affairs (DFA) to start negotiations with Iran to allow the safe passage of Philippine-bound oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, Malacañang announced on Tuesday. This is to ensure the steady delivery of oil to the country amid the hostilities in the Middle East. “According to DFA Secretary Tess Lazaro, we have good relations with Iran,” Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Undersecretary Claire Castro said in Filipino in a Palace briefing. “That has already been ordered by the president. She will be meeting with the Ambassador of Iran, most probably by tomorrow or next week.” Iran has closed down access to the Strait of Hormuz, where one-fifth of the world’s oil supply passes, following attacks initiated by the United States and Iran ultimately shutting down access of tankers to and from oil- exporting Gulf states. Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian urged Marcos to “open high-level talks” with the Iranian government and remove its blockade of tankers bound for the Philippines, predominantly reliant of oil importation. Such “strategic coordination,” the lawmaker noted, would ensure that the rising costs of goods, especially petroleum products, would not further burden many Filipinos.

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