Iran has escalated tensions in the Persian Gulf by publishing a new maritime map that asserts regulatory control over territorial waters belonging to the United Arab Emirates and Oman, marking a significant expansion of Tehran's territorial claims in one of the world's most strategic waterways.
The Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), a newly operational Iranian maritime body, released the controversial map defining its claimed jurisdiction zone extending from Kuh-e Mobarak in Iran to southern Fujairah in the UAE, and from Qeshm Island to Umm al-Quwain. Under the new regime, all commercial vessels transiting the designated area must now seek authorization from Iranian authorities—a requirement that directly challenges the sovereignty of neighboring Gulf states.
To understand today's headlines, we must look at yesterday's decisions. The Strait of Hormuz has long been a flashpoint in regional geopolitics, serving as the chokepoint through which approximately one-fifth of the world's oil supply passes daily. This latest Iranian assertion represents the formalization of claims that Tehran has previously hinted at but never explicitly mapped until now.
Five Gulf monarchies—Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE—issued a rare joint warning through the International Maritime Organization, instructing commercial vessels not to comply with Iranian requirements. The unified response underscores the gravity with which regional powers view Tehran's territorial expansion.
According to the Institute for the Study of War, Iran appears to be deliberately expanding its claims beyond boundaries it had previously stated. "This change lays explicit claim to control over territorial waters of the UAE and Oman in addition to what Iran had earlier outlined," the assessment noted.
The timing is particularly significant. Iranian officials, though divided on nuclear negotiations with the United States, have unified around formalizing control of this critical waterway. The PGSA became operational in May 2026, coinciding with renewed diplomatic contacts between Washington and Tehran over the Iranian nuclear program.
Currently, only Chinese-linked shadow fleet operators are paying PGSA tolls, according to maritime industry sources. Western shipping companies have avoided compliance due to potential exposure to U.S. sanctions, creating a two-tier system in which vessels aligned with Beijing effectively legitimize Iranian claims while Western commerce remains in legal limbo.
The map publication comes as Gulf states have mounted an unprecedented diplomatic campaign urging the Trump administration to avoid military confrontation with Iran. The convergence of these two developments—Iranian territorial assertion and Gulf diplomatic appeals—suggests a region bracing for potential escalation while simultaneously seeking to prevent it.
For international shipping companies, the dilemma is acute. Compliance with Iranian demands risks U.S. sanctions; defiance risks Iranian interdiction. Tehran has a documented history of seizing foreign-flagged vessels in disputed waters, most recently detaining a South Korean tanker in 2021.
The broader implications extend beyond maritime law. Iran's move effectively challenges the post-World War II international order in the Gulf, where borders and territorial waters were largely determined by British colonial administration and subsequent UN conventions. By unilaterally redrawing these boundaries, Tehran is testing whether the international community—and particularly the United States—will enforce existing territorial agreements.
As of this writing, neither Oman nor the UAE have issued formal diplomatic protests to Tehran, though both countries have coordinated responses through the Gulf Cooperation Council. The muted official reaction may reflect the complex balancing act both nations maintain between their security partnerships with Washington and their economic relationships with Tehran.
What remains clear is that the Strait of Hormuz—already one of the world's most militarized waterways—has become even more contested. With U.S. naval forces maintaining a constant presence, Iranian Revolutionary Guard speedboats patrolling aggressively, and now formal Iranian territorial claims overlapping with Arab states' waters, the potential for miscalculation has rarely been higher.
