A DRAFT United Nations security council resolution demanding freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz has received the support of 112 nations, diplomatic sources revealed on Tuesday.

The resolution, tabled by the United States and Bahrain, is aimed at protecting commercial shipping and energy supplies as well as ensuring seafarers’ safety through the critically important waterway.

The draft resolution also calls for an end to Iranian attacks on its Gulf neighbours.

Iran was the victim of an illegal and unprovoked attack by the US and Israel on February 28 and has attacked US bases and interests in the Middle East in retaliation.

Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have joined Manama and Washington as principal sponsors, while India, Japan, South Korea, Kenya, Argentina and most member states of the European Union have also expressed support, the sources said.

It is the second time that Bahrain has fronted such a resolution. The first one, tabled last month, was vetoed by both China and Russia.

Both have again expressed reservations about the new draft, without saying whether they intend to use their veto.

No date has yet been set for a vote on the resolution.

The push for a council resolution comes as peace negotiations between Iran and the US remain deadlocked.

The US is demanding that Iran dismantle its nuclear programme and lift restrictions on the strait. 

Iran is demanding war reparations, an end to a naval blockade imposed by the US on its ports and a ceasefire on all fronts, including in Lebanon, where US ally Israel is fighting Iranian-backed Hezbollah.

Iran has also insisted that any peace deal respect its sovereignty over the strait, a demand that Washington has dismissed as “unacceptable.”

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi accused the US on Tuesday of seeking capitulation by Iran rather than peace. “True peace cannot be built with the language of humiliation, threat, and forced concession-taking,” he wrote on social media.

Diplomatic efforts have intensified across the region.

Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan travelled to Doha on Tuesday for talks with Qatari leaders.

He said: “All the world’s states are now feeling the brunt of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz,” he said, calling for an agreement to reopen the waterway to free passage.

Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani warned against a return to fighting and urged support for Pakistan’s mediation efforts. “We do not support the resumption of war,” he said.