ASTANA, July 8. /TASS/. Kazakhstan's Ministry of Trade and Integration has stated that there were no US strikes on the territory leased by the republic in the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas on the shores of the Strait of Hormuz.

"Several Kazakh media outlets ran reports with the headline: 'A US airstrike bombed a port leased by Kazakhstan the day before.' We inform you that this information is incorrect. There were no airstrikes on the territory leased by Kazakhstan," the ministry's statement read.

Earlier, US Central Command (CENTCOM) reported a series of powerful strikes on Iran in response to the Islamic Republic's alleged attacks on three ships in the Strait of Hormuz. On July 8, the Mehr news agency, citing eyewitnesses, reported a series of explosions near Qeshm Island, the port city of Sirik, and near Bandar Abbas.

On July 7, the Kazakh Ministry of Trade and Integration announced the signing of a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) agreement with the port administration of Iran's Hormozgan Province to construct a terminal at the Shahid Rajaei port in Bandar Abbas. The 27-year agreement allocates two years for terminal construction and 25 years for facility operation. Through this terminal, Astana aims to improve logistics resilience and expand its export geography to markets in the Persian Gulf, South and Southeast Asia, and East Africa.