Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said the Middle East does not need the United States to act as a “regional policeman”, as tensions between Washington and Tehran continue over control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
Pezeshkian made the remarks on Saturday on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in India during a meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
“We do not need a regional policeman,” he said, according to the Iranian presidency.
He added that the security and territorial integrity of the region could only be guaranteed by the countries and major players within the region itself.
“The territorial integrity and security of the region can only be guaranteed by its main players and the countries that comprise it,” Pezeshkian said.
Iran has been at war since February 28, when US-Israeli strikes reportedly killed the country’s Supreme Leader.
Tehran retaliated with attacks across the region and imposed a blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil shipping route through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil previously passed.
Since then, Iran and the United States have been locked in a confrontation over control of the strategic waterway.
The strait was previously open to international shipping, but Iran now requires vessels to obtain permission to transit and is considering a system for imposing service fees.
Vessels that fail to comply have reportedly faced Iranian attacks, while the United States has periodically carried out strikes along the Iranian coastline in an effort to challenge Tehran’s control of the waterway.
More than six months into the conflict, the continuing blockade has contributed to higher global oil prices, with crude rising above $100 a barrel this week.
Despite the ongoing hostilities, Pezeshkian said Iran does not want the conflict to continue.
“Despite all the injustices suffered by our people, we neither desire war nor its continuation. Peace remains our priority,” he said.
