Trump's territorial claim
President Donald Trump said on Friday that he considers the Strait of Hormuz — a waterway bordered by Iran and Oman — to be "an American territory." Speaking at a campaign event in South Carolina, Trump told a crowd of supporters, "We don't even know if we won, because I view the Strait of Hormuz as an American territory right now."
The president first floated the idea of claiming the strait last week, saying he would wait until the conclusion of the war in Iran to declare the waterway a U.S. territory. Then, on Tuesday, he posted an image on Truth Social showing the strait labeled "New U.S. Territory." He took his remarks further on Friday during a campaign rally for Sen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., who is seeking to fill the seat of her late brother, Lindsey Graham.
"It's an American territory," Trump said.
Iranian response
Iran's deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, previously dismissed the president's comments as "fanciful delusions." "The Strait of Hormuz has been Iranian, is Iranian, and will remain Iranian," he said.
Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, also weighed in on Saturday, saying the economic operation Trump has threatened was "bound to fail." "We have seen this movie before," Araghchi wrote on X. "Same bull. Different bullies."
Esmaeil Baqaei, a spokesman for Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Trump's move "is an assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty over every independent member state of the United Nations." He warned the "end result would be the complete erosion of sovereignty as the foundational basis of the UN-based inter-State system, and a recipe for an abysm."
Escalating rhetoric and economic warfare
Trump this week said he would launch "economic warfare" against Iran as efforts to end the war continue to fail. As part of that threat, he said institutions or governments providing any support to Iran would face "tremendous" consequences.
Trump also said making the strait a U.S. territory would require deploying troops in the area indefinitely. He said the United States would "never apologise" for military action against Iran, and argued that higher gas prices have been worth it in his pursuit of preventing Iran from having a nuclear weapon.
Before the U.S.-Israeli joint attack in February that triggered the war, navigation through the Strait of Hormuz was free for everyone. An Iranian blockade, followed by a U.S. blockade, has since disrupted the energy market and caused oil prices to skyrocket globally.
The United States currently maintains a military blockade of Iran's shipping and ports. As of Friday, American forces have redirected 68 commercial vessels to comply with the blockade, according to U.S. Central Command (Centcom).
Roughly one-fifth of the world's seaborne oil supply typically passes through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump said the U.S. had escorted over 1,000 ships through the strait and that 16 million barrels of oil moved through it "yesterday alone." Centcom reported assisting roughly 1,300 commercial vessels and moving more than 660 million barrels of crude since early May.
In contrast, Reuters reported on August 21 that just seven commodity ships transited the strait, with no large crude carriers or LNG tankers among them. A Centcom spokesperson, Captain Tim Hawkins, said multiple routes remain "free and open" for commercial transit.
Perspectives
United States (President Trump): Views the Strait of Hormuz as "American territory," has threatened economic warfare against Iran, and asserts the U.S. will "never apologise" for military action.
Iran (Foreign Ministry, Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi): Rejects Trump's claims as "fanciful delusions," insists the strait "has been Iranian, is Iranian, and will remain Iranian," and warns that U.S. actions represent "an assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty" that could "erode" the UN-based system of sovereignty.