Summary

Ship seized off coast of UAE as leaders discuss Hormuz A ship was reported seized off the coast of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and was heading for Iranian waters on Thursday, as the US and Chinese leaders met in Beijing to discuss global problems including the Iran war. After the talks between US president Donald Trump and Chinese president Xi Jinping, a White House official said the two leaders had agreed that the Strait of Hormuz should be open and that Iran should never obtain nuclear weapons. China is close to Iran and the main buyer of its oil. Iran has largely shut the strait to ships apart from its own since the US-Israeli war on Iran began on February 28, causing the biggest ever disruption to global energy supplies. The US paused the bombing last month but added a blockade of Iran’s ports. In an interview with CNBC in Beijing, US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said he believed China would “do what they can” to help open the strait, which he said was “very much in their interest”. In the latest incident on the trade route, an Indian cargo vessel carrying livestock from Africa to the UAE was sunk in waters off Oman. India condemned the attack and said all 14 crew members had been rescued by the Omani coastguard. Vanguard, a UK maritime security advisory firm, said the vessel was believed to have been hit by a missile or drone which caused an explosion. The company security officer reported that the vessel was taken by Iranian personnel Separately, maritime security agency UKMTO reported on Thursday that “unauthorised personnel” had boarded a ship anchored off the coast of the UAE port of Fujairah and were steering it towards Iran. “The company security officer reported that the vessel was taken by Iranian personnel while at anchor,” Vanguard said. Security in that area is particularly sensitive, as Fujairah is the UAE’s sole oil port on the far side of the strait, allowing some exports to reach markets without passing through it. Still, Iran appears to be making more deals with countries to allow some ships to pass through the strait – if they accept Tehran’s terms. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said 30 vessels had crossed the strait since Wednesday evening, still far short of about 140 that typically crossed daily before the war, but a substantial increase if confirmed. Lebanese and Israeli envoys were meeting with US officials in Washington on Thursday in efforts to end the hostilities.