FEATURE | Iran sidelining nuclear programme to weaponise the Strait of Hormuz

"Recognise the new Iranian order in the Strait of Hormuz: this is the only way forward," wrote Ebrahim Azizi, a member of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy committee on social media, addressing the United States.

While their insistence on maintaining control over the waterway risks becoming another long-term dispute with the rest of the world, there is little disagreement over the policy in Tehran, two senior Iranian sources told Reuters.

There had been discussions about whether Iran risked overplaying its hand, but the overall view in top circles was that no rational country could give up such an important leverage point, one of the sources said.

"The issue of Hormuz, which is Iran's golden weapon, is something they now want to take away from Iran, and that will be absolutely impossible," the source added.