Iran-GCC summit: What’s behind the meeting, why is Bahrain not attending?

Iran says it plans to hold talks with Iraq and Gulf nations in Oman to help strengthen shared regional security.

Vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman [File: Stringer/Reuters]

Iran says a meeting between Iraq and the Gulf countries will be held in Oman on Monday to discuss the Strait of Hormuz, which remains under Tehran’s blockade amid the diplomatic deadlock with the United States.

Global energy supplies have been disrupted due to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, impacting countries around the world. The blockade has particularly affected Gulf countries, which depend on oil and gas for vast majority of their budgets.

list 1 of 3 Why US-Iran war over Hormuz is threatening the Gulf’s waters

list 2 of 3 Houthis, Yemeni forces engaged in fierce battles: Why each front matters

list 3 of 3 Iran claims to have captured a US ‘sail drone’ near Hormuz Strait

In a statement on Friday, Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the meeting is intended to “promote better understanding among the countries of the region and help strengthen shared regional security”.

But Bahrain, a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), has said it will not participate in the planned meeting. Bahrain has borne the brunt of Iranian attacks since the US and Israel launched the war on Iran in February.

So what’s behind the meeting and why won’t Bahrain participate?

Here’s what we know:

What has Iran said about the meeting?

On Saturday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baghaei, told Al Jazeera that the meeting is “a sign of Iran’s good intention because we have said all along that the security of the region must be guaranteed by the countries of the region, without intervention by the foreigners, without intervention by the outside powers”.

“This is a sign we will talk to our neighbours, despite the fact that their territories, their military bases or the military bases of the United States, were used to attack Iran,” he said.

Gulf nations have accused Tehran of attacking civilian targets, including airports and desalination plants.

Baghaei added that Tehran would “brief the delegations about the results of the Iran and Oman consultations regarding the safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz”.

Moreover, on Sunday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that Tehran’s expected agreement with Muscat to govern the Strait of Hormuz will not trigger a reopening of the waterway.

In comments to Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, Araghchi said Iran will “provide the participating countries with the details of the agreement with Oman and the maps related to the new route” during the meeting .

But the agreement does not “in any way” signal that the strait will reopen, with Tehran still expecting the US to honour the commitments of the June 60-day memorandum of understanding signed in June , he said. The MoU collapsed in July after the US tried to push for an alternative route closer to Omani territory, drawing Iranian attacks.

On Sunday, at least one person was killed and four others wounded after an Iranian commercial vessel was attacked near Qeshm Island in the strait, with attacks on ships escalating in recent weeks.

“Iran believes that the responsibility for ensuring security and stability in the region lies solely with the countries of the region,” Araghchi added.

Who is planning to attend the meeting?

Iraq and most of the Gulf nations have not yet responded whether they will attend the planned meeting.

However, Bahrain has said it will not be participating in the proposed meeting.

“In light of what has been circulated … the Kingdom of Bahrain will not participate in it,” Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Saturday.

Pointing to attacks on infrastructure across the Gulf, Bahrain said that security and stability in the region “cannot be preserved through a policy of appeasement” and called for Hormuz to be open without “discrimination, fees or permits”.

Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry said it maintains its commitment to dialogue, but “will not be a party to any collective meeting that includes Iran before the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries”.

Bahrain cut diplomatic ties with Iran in 2016 alongside Saudi Arabia during an earlier crisis between the regional rivals. While Riyadh restored ties in 2023, Manama is yet to do so.

What is behind the meeting between the GCC and Iran?

Indirect talks mediated by Oman are continuing between regional actors regarding safe passage and temporary shipping lanes, even as recent attacks on commercial vessels highlight the ongoing danger in the waterway through which a fifth of global oil and gas passes.

Top officials from Iran and the Gulf countries have held calls in an effort to resolve the conflict. Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani visited Tehran late last month, aimed at de-escalating tensions and helping break the diplomatic deadlock between Iran and the United States.

A source familiar with Monday’s meeting told Iran’s Tasnim news agency that an agreement on routes through the strait between Iran and Oman will be presented at the meeting, but the strait will not reopen unless the US meets Iran’s conditions on the waterway.

Iran wants its control of the Strait of Hormuz to be recognised, allowing it to collect fees from ships that use it, which Washington rejects. Oman, which controls the opposite bank of the strait, says it is negotiating with the agreement of other regional states.

What is the current situation at the Strait of Hormuz?

The status of the Strait of Hormuz is contested and restricted more than six months into the US and Israel’s war on Iran.

Iran maintains restrictions and considers the strait largely closed or tightly controlled amid ongoing conflict.

Tehran has also been pushing to formalise its control over the waterway, including potentially charging fees for passage, and has been in negotiations with Muscat, as Oman’s territorial waters also cover Hormuz.

Tehran has also insisted that normal transit will not resume until the US lifts the naval blockades on its ports and removes sanctions.

The strait was free to use by shipping from all nations before the US and Israel attacked Iran late in February, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Daily shipping traffic through the strait has plummeted by about 95 percent since the start of the war on Iran, dropping from a pre-war average of roughly 130–140 ships per day down to an average of about five to seven vessels a day.

US President Donald Trump has, however, said it is in total control of the waterway.

Meanwhile, on Sunday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said a vessel has been struck by an unknown projectile while transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

In another incident on Sunday, at least one person was killed and four others were wounded in an attack on an Iranian commercial vessel near Hengam Island and the Shib Deraz coast of Qeshm Island, Qeshm Governor Hossein Amir Teymouri said, according to Iranian state broadcaster IRIB.

Teymouri described the incident as an attack by the “US terrorist enemy”.

A senior Iranian Revolutionary Guard Navy official has also warned US naval vessels against approaching the Strait of Hormuz, challenging Trump’s claims that Washington controls the waterway.

“If the Strait of Hormuz is under American control, then go ahead – bring one of your warships within 100km [62 miles],” the deputy political commander of the IRGC Navy said, according to Iran’s Fars news agency.

He said US forces know that any vessels approaching the area would face a response from Iranian forces, adding that similar incidents had occurred in recent days.

The US has not yet commented on this incident.

伊朗表示计划在阿曼与伊拉克和海湾国家举行会谈，以加强地区共同安全。

从阿曼穆桑达姆港看到的霍尔木兹海峡附近的船只 [图片：Stringer/路透社]

伊朗表示，伊拉克和海湾国家将于周一在阿曼举行会议，讨论霍尔木兹海峡问题。由于与美国的外交僵局，该海峡仍处于德黑兰的封锁之下。

由于霍尔木兹海峡遭到封锁，全球能源供应中断，影响到世界各国。此次封锁对海湾国家的影响尤为严重，这些国家的大部分财政预算都依赖石油和天然气。

列表 1/3：为什么美伊因霍尔木兹海峡而爆发的战争正在威胁海湾水域

胡塞武装与也门军队激战三场（列表 2/3）：为何每条战线都至关重要

伊朗声称在霍尔木兹海峡附近捕获了一架美国“帆船无人机”（共3条记录中的第3条）

伊朗外交部周五发表声明称，此次会议旨在“促进该地区各国之间的相互了解，并有助于加强共同的地区安全”。

但海湾合作委员会成员国巴林表示，将不会参加此次会议。自美国和以色列今年2月对伊朗发动战争以来，巴林一直是伊朗袭击的主要目标。

那么这次会议的背后是什么？巴林为什么不参加？

我们目前掌握的情况如下：

伊朗方面对此次会晤作了什么回应？

周六，伊朗外交部发言人伊斯梅尔·巴盖伊告诉半岛电视台，此次会晤“表明了伊朗的良好意愿，因为我们一直强调，地区安全必须由地区各国来保障，不受外国干涉，不受外部势力干涉”。

他说：“这表明我们将与邻国对话，尽管他们的领土、军事基地或美国的军事基地都曾被用来攻击伊朗。”

海湾国家指责德黑兰袭击民用目标，包括机场和海水淡化厂。

巴盖伊补充说，德黑兰将“向各代表团通报伊朗和阿曼就船舶安全通过霍尔木兹海峡进行的磋商结果”。

此外，伊朗外交部长阿巴斯·阿拉格奇周日警告说，德黑兰与马斯喀特就霍尔木兹海峡治理达成的预期协议不会触发该水道的重新开放。

阿拉格奇在接受《阿拉伯新报》采访时表示，伊朗将在会议期间“向与会国提供与阿曼达成的协议详情以及与新路线相关的地图”。

但他表示，该协议“绝不”意味着海峡将重新开放，德黑兰方面仍然期望美国履行6月份签署的为期60天的谅解备忘录中的承诺。该谅解备忘录于7月份失效，此前美国试图推动一条更靠近阿曼领土的替代路线，此举招致伊朗的袭击。

周日，一艘伊朗商船在海峡格什姆岛附近遭到袭击，造成至少一人死亡，四人受伤。最近几周，针对船只的袭击事件不断升级。

“伊朗认为，确保地区安全与稳定的责任完全在于该地区各国，”阿拉格奇补充道。

谁计划参加会议？

伊拉克和大多数海湾国家尚未回应是否会出席此次计划中的会议。

然而，巴林方面表示将不会参加此次会议。

巴林外交部周六发表声明称：“鉴于目前流传的消息……巴林王国将不会参与其中。”

巴林指出海湾地区基础设施遭到袭击，称该地区的安全与稳定“不能通过绥靖政策来维护”，并呼吁霍尔木兹海峡向外开放，不应存在“歧视、费用或许可证”。

巴林外交部表示，巴林将继续致力于对话，但“在两国恢复外交关系之前，不会参加任何包括伊朗在内的集体会议”。

2016年，巴林与沙特阿拉伯一道，在伊朗和沙特阿拉伯此前的地区冲突中断绝了与伊朗的外交关系。尽管利雅得在2023年恢复了与伊朗的关系，但巴林至今仍未恢复外交关系。

海湾合作委员会与伊朗会晤的背后是什么？

尽管最近发生的针对商船的袭击事件凸显了全球五分之一石油和天然气运输所经的水道仍然存在的危险，但由阿曼斡旋的区域各方仍在就安全通行和临时航道问题进行间接谈判。

伊朗和海湾国家的高级官员已举行电话会议，试图解决冲突。卡塔尔首相谢赫·穆罕默德·本·阿卜杜勒拉赫曼·本·贾西姆·阿勒萨尼上月底访问了德黑兰，旨在缓和紧张局势，并帮助打破伊朗和美国之间的外交僵局。

一位熟悉周一会议的消息人士告诉伊朗塔斯尼姆通讯社，伊朗和阿曼之间关于通过海峡航线的协议将在会议上提出，但除非美国满足伊朗在该水道上的条件，否则海峡不会重新开放。

伊朗希望其对霍尔木兹海峡的控制权得到承认，从而可以向使用该海峡的船只收取费用，但华盛顿方面拒绝了这一要求。控制着海峡对岸的阿曼表示，它正在与其他地区国家进行谈判，并已获得他们的同意。

霍尔木兹海峡目前的局势如何？

在美国和以色列对伊朗发动战争六个多月后，霍尔木兹海峡的地位仍然存在争议并受到限制。

在持续冲突中，伊朗维持着对海峡的限制，并认为该海峡基本处于关闭或严格控制状态。

德黑兰也一直在努力正式确立对该水道的控制权，包括可能收取通行费，并且一直在与马斯喀特进行谈判，因为阿曼的领海也覆盖了霍尔木兹河。

德黑兰方面也坚持，除非美国解除对其港口的海上封锁并取消制裁，否则正常的过境运输不会恢复。

在美以两国于 2 月下旬袭击伊朗、导致最高领袖阿亚图拉·阿里·哈梅内伊丧生之前，所有国家的船只都可以自由通行该海峡。

自伊朗战争开始以来，每天通过海峡的航运交通量下降了约 95%，从战前平均每天约 130 至 140 艘船下降到平均每天约 5 至 7 艘船。

然而，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普表示，美国完全控制着这条水道。

与此同时，英国海事贸易行动处（UKMTO）周日表示，一艘船只在穿越霍尔木兹海峡时遭到不明飞行物袭击。

据伊朗国家广播电视台IRIB报道，格什姆岛省长侯赛因·阿米尔·泰穆里称，周日发生的另一起事件中，一艘伊朗商船在亨加姆岛和格什姆岛希卜德拉兹海岸附近遭到袭击，造成至少一人死亡，四人受伤。

泰穆里将这起事件描述为“美国恐怖分子敌人”的袭击。

一名伊朗革命卫队海军高级官员也警告美国海军舰艇不要靠近霍尔木兹海峡，挑战了特朗普关于华盛顿控制该水道的说法。

据伊朗法尔斯通讯社报道，伊朗伊斯兰革命卫队海军副政治司令表示：“如果霍尔木兹海峡在美国的控制之下，那就放马过来——把你们的一艘军舰派到100公里（62英里）以内。”

他说，美军知道任何靠近该地区的船只都会遭到伊朗军队的回应，并补充说，最近几天也发生过类似事件。

美国方面尚未对此事发表评论。