Qatar urges diplomacy as US and Iran both claim Hormuz control

• Brent crude rises to $103
• Saudi East-West pipeline reopens
• ‘Iranian order now prevails’

The war of words between the US and Iran over control of the Strait of Hormuz has intensified, as Qatar backed diplomatic efforts to end the seven-month-long conflict in the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia’s reopening of its East-West pipeline – temporarily shut this month after a drone attack – eased market concerns about supply disruptions.

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Al-Thani said on social media that his country was working to facilitate diplomacy between Iran and the US and secure a breakthrough.

“We would like to see diplomacy as the way to resolve the strait issue. Of course, it’s unacceptable to close the strait and to mine an international waterway,” he said on Wednesday.

“It’s a lifeline for my country. It’s a lifeline for the region that we are living in… We are trying our best to find the best peaceful way to resolve it. There should be legal ways and legal avenues that protect our rights as a coastal state to have free passage through the strait.”

Despite easing concerns about supply disruptions, Brent crude futures rose 0.5 percent to $103.1 a barrel at 03:00 GMT, while WTI was flat at $89.44 a barrel.

Brent has gained 14 percent this month, its biggest rise since July. WTI is up more than 4 percent. In September, the spread between the two benchmarks widened to its highest level in four months.

US Central Command denied Tehran’s claim to full control of the strait in a social media post, adding that “Iran has no navy because American forces sank it”.

Further reading:

• Saudi oil exports hit wartime high after pipeline flows resume
• How Gulf oil is being shuttled through Hormuz
• Trump says no sanctions relief for Iran

“Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz as evidenced by the thousands of ships that have passed through freely along with more than 1 billion barrels of oil just over the past few months,” the post said.

“Iranian order now prevails in the Strait of Hormuz,” the state-backed IRNA news agency reported, quoting army spokesperson brigadier general Mohammad Akrami-Nia.

He called the Strait of Hormuz an Iranian strategic asset and vowed to defend the country’s right.

Meanwhile, most Gulf stock exchanges ended lower on Tuesday driven by the stalemate over the peace plan.

Saudi Arabia’s benchmark index fell 1.2 percent, while Aramco shares dropped more than 1 percent. Qatar’s market gauge fell more than 1 percent.

Dubai’s and Abu Dhabi’s main market indices fell 0.2 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively. Kuwait and Oman also closed lower, while Bahrain ended the day marginally higher.