Iran leader says Gulf future without US, new Hormuz rules to boost stability, economy
Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, the second son of late Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, attends a meeting in Tehran, Iran, October 13, 2024. PHOTO: WANA/REUTERS
Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said in a published written message on Thursday that a new chapter for the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz has been taking shape since the Iran war with the United States and Israel broke out on February 28.
He said that Tehran would secure the Gulf region and eliminate what he described as “the enemy’s abuses of the waterway”.
Khamenei added that the new management of the Strait of Hormuz would bring calm, progress and economic benefits to all Gulf nations.
He also said the future of the Gulf would be “without US presence”, stressing that new legal and management frameworks for the Strait of Hormuz would bring stability and economic benefits to the region.
The brilliant future of the Persian Gulf region will be a future without the US where the progress, comfort, and prosperity of its nations are served.
— Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei (@MKhamenei_ir) April 30, 2026
In a written statement released by his office to mark Persian Gulf National Day, Khamenei said the presence of foreign powers, particularly the United States, had been a source of instability in the region, adding that a “new phase is emerging”.
He said the Gulf was a key part of regional identity and global economic connectivity, particularly through the Strait of Hormuz and the Sea of Oman.
Khamenei said Iran would ensure security in the Gulf through what he described as new management of the Strait of Hormuz, including updated legal frameworks.
“These frameworks will bring stability, progress and economic benefits for all nations in the region,” he added.
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The supreme leader said regional countries shared a common destiny in the Gulf and that external actors “from thousands of kilometres away” have no place in its future.
The message also referred to what it described as a “new regional order” emerging from recent developments.
The statement came amid heightened tensions following the war that began on February 28 between Iran and the United States and Israel, which disrupted shipping and energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
A ceasefire announced on April 8 has so far held, while diplomatic efforts continue to reach a broader agreement, including discussions over maritime access and security in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran designated April 30 as Persian Gulf National Day in 2005, commemorating the expulsion of Portuguese forces from the Strait of Hormuz during the Safavid era.
Khamenei was selected as the supreme leader on March 9 following the killing of his father, Ali Khamenei, in US-Israeli strikes on February 28. Since taking office, he has communicated only through written statements.
