TEHRAN: Iran has criticised Germany over recent comments concerning the Strait of Hormuz, accusing Berlin of complicity in military aggression against the Islamic Republic and rejecting allegations that Tehran unlawfully mined the strategic waterway.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei issued a strongly worded statement on social media, describing the remarks by German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul as “utterly shameful” and “a grotesque distortion of reality that reeks of Mephistopheles in Goethe’s Faust”.
The German Foreign Minister’s rhetoric on the Strait of Hormuz is utterly shameful — a grotesque distortion of reality that reeks of Mephistopheles in Goethe’s Faust.
Germany must be held fully accountable for its complicity in military aggression against Iran and bear the heavy… pic.twitter.com/pA1SUnyD4p
— Esmaeil Baqaei (@IRIMFA_SPOX) July 6, 2026
Baghaei’s response came after Wadephul told the German newspaper Handelsblatt that Germany had no obligation to make concessions to Tehran, alleging that Iran had laid mines in an international shipping route in the Strait of Hormuz.
The German foreign minister further stated that although Berlin was not currently seeking payment for any future mine-clearance operations, it would be justified in requiring Iran to bear the costs, arguing that such efforts would address damage allegedly caused by the Iranian government.
Rejecting the allegations, Baghaei said Germany should instead be held accountable for what he described as its role in military action against Iran.
“Germany must be held fully accountable for its complicity in military aggression against Iran and bear the heavy costs of its active participation in the crime of aggression,” he said.
The Iranian spokesperson also accused Berlin of attempting to deflect responsibility through inflammatory rhetoric, asserting that no amount of “offensive posturing” could absolve Germany of what he called its involvement in an “illegal war” and alleged war crimes committed against the Iranian people.
The exchange marks a further deterioration in relations between Tehran and Berlin amid heightened regional tensions and continuing disputes over security in the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important maritime routes for global energy shipments.
