DOHA, March 16. /TASS/. It will take at least two to three years to fully restore shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, even if the conflict around Iran ends immediately, said Mehdi Safari, the Islamic Republic’s former deputy foreign minister, the country's ex-ambassador to Russia and China.

"If the war ends today with Iran's victory, it will take 2-3 years for the Strait of Hormuz to return to its previous state," he said on the air of the Iranian SNN TV channel.

On March 11, a spokesman for the Iranian Armed Forces’ Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters announced that Iran would not allow any oil cargo related to the United States or its allies to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. On March 15, he assured that Tehran would resort to any means necessary, including controlling shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, to force the enemy to surrender.

The United States and Israel launched a military operation against Iran on February 28. Major Iranian cities, including Tehran, were struck. The White House justified the attack by citing alleged missile and nuclear threats from Iran. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a retaliatory operation, targeting sites in Israel. US military bases in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE were also hit.