Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, Bahrain’s foreign minister and the current chair of the Gulf Cooperation Council’s Council of Ministers, in a meeting with Jean-Noël Barrot, France’s foreign minister, welcomed the joint efforts of Paris and London in the Strait of Hormuz and emphasized the immediate release of the crews of the detained vessels.

According to Bahrain’s news agency, Al Zayani, referring to the Gulf Cooperation Council’s firm position on the need to return shipping conditions to those prior to 9 Esfand, when the Iran war began, said that any imposition of fees or a permit system for passage through the Strait of Hormuz must be opposed.

The incumbent chair of the GCC Council of Ministers also called for observance of the right of transit through this waterway in accordance with international law and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.